Bloodstream
by Bell-Jar
Summary: In his senior year of high school, Harry Potter's life takes a turn for the surreal. Vampires, werewolves, witches, and a social life? Have fun with all that. Slash!
1. I

**Warnings: **Slash, Total butchering (for the most part) of the Vampire Diaries story line, Total elimination (for the most part) of the Harry Potter universe. AU/AR.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter or The Vampire Diaries, they belong to JK Rowling and LJ

Smith respectively. Duh.

ooo

**Bloodstream**

ooo**  
**

**I: **

"_Can you hear me?_

_Will you listen?_

_Don't come near me, don't go missing_

_In the lissome light of evening,_

_Help me, Cosmia, I'm grieving"_

_-Cosmia, Joanna Newsom_

Sunrise.

He was lucky to be watching it, he supposed. Most of his kind would never be allowed the simple pleasure of sitting through a sunrise. At least, not without experiencing some slight discomfort followed by a quick and excruciating death.

Perspective is always a good thing to have, the young man mused.

He was sitting on the roof of the Salvatore Boarding House, a place he hadn't been in a century. For good reason, mind you. The entire town was harboring some serious sociopathic tendencies when it came to his kind. Yet here he was, risking his continued existence and flawless complexion. And for what?

"No," he muttered, effectively cutting off that dangerous train of thought. Doubt was for weaker beings like humans or his brother.

He smirked.

The key to opening the Tomb was finally close at hand. He could feel it. It would just require a little...coaxing. And after all, what was Damon Salvatore good at if not a little coaxing? Yes, he decided, it was a good day to be undead. He would soon have everything he wanted.

Damon leapt, and a single black raven flew into the sunrise.

ooo

Several miles away, in the town of Mystic Falls, a very different young man was sitting on his bed. Harry Potter, age seventeen, had just woken up at the early hour of six in the morning. Today was the first day of the school year, and Harry was determined to get it started on the right foot.

He was sitting indian style, with an enormously fat cat in his lap and a diary askew in front of him. His jet black hair was a bird's nest, and he was wearing black framed eyeglasses. The glasses were perched on a delicate nose and covered bleary green eyes.

_Dear Diary, _he wrote. _Today will be different. It has to be. I will smile and it will be believable. That smile will say_, _"I'm fine, thank you." "Yes, I feel much better."_ _I will no longer be the sad little boy who lost his parents. I will start fresh, be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through._

He sighed and closed the journal. It was a sturdy thing, leather bound and a dark brown color. Not the most attractive thing in the world, Harry mused, but hopefully no one would be looking at it. Harry placed the ball point pen in the book, and closed the combination lock.

"Alright now, it's time to get up!" He exclaimed, unfolding his legs and earning a distressed snuffle from the large cat between his legs. "Come on, Meow. I have to get ready for school."

Meow, short for Chairman Meow, gave a displeased warble before hopping off the bed. Really, it was less of a hop and more of a fall. The cat landed with a thud and caused a wind chime hanging from Harry's ceiling to sound off. He then sauntered out of Harry's room and into the hallway without a backwards glance. No doubt he was trying to find someplace where his sleep would not be interrupted. Harry blinked a few times at the feline's exit. "We really should consider changing his cat food."

Harry stood up and stretched to his full, albeit slightly uninspiring, height. He stood on the tips of his toes and reached for the ceiling, causing his black tank top to rise and expose a bit of milky white stomach. His torso was slender and well toned, and he had shapely limbs ending in delicate hands and feet. He thanked his slight father and delicately built mother for his small build. He exercised regularly, though, lending some wiry strength to his deceptively small frame.

He gave three knocks to the left wall of his room and waited for a signal that has twin sister was awake. This was a staple in his morning routine, because he knew that she could sleep through a hurricane, and many a morning she had caused them to be late to school. Sometime early in their high school careers, he had gotten into the habit of beating on their adjoining walls until she was awake. As the years had passed, this gradually calmed into three sharp knocks on the wall.

"I'm up..." a muffled female's voice grunted through the door. Harry allowed a small smile at the thought of Elena, undoubtedly half asleep and zombie walking her way to the closet in a desperate attempt to try to pick out an outfit for the day. The smile remained as he walked toward his shower and prepared for the day.

It was good to know that some things were always constant.

ooo

Harry came down the stairs two at a time and walked into the kitchen to be greeted by two brightly smiling men and a softly snoring cat asleep in the windowsill above the sink.

"Good morning!" One of the men chirped, smiling over a copy of the paper. He was sitting at the table, a massive quantity of food in front of him. "Grab a plate, Remus decided to cook enough food to cover the dietary needs of Quebec. We'll be eating eggs , bacon, and pancakes for the next two months."

"I can see that," Harry replied, smiling softly. He placed his bag down beside the doorway, walked into the kitchen proper, and started rifling through the cabinets to find a plate.

"Second cabinet from the left on the top," Remus supplied, still knee deep in butter and bacon grease at the stove. The slightly graying man -though he would deny it _vehemently_ if called out- was intently frying something. His eyebrows were at an intense downward slope, and he was biting his lip.

After he grabbed a plate from the correct cabinet, Harry speared a few pieces of fruit with a fork and grabbed a couple of pancakes and a slice of bacon, eyeing Remus warily all the while.

"You'll have to forgive Remus, when he gets nervous becomes a little...tense." Sirius turned the page of his paper. "He just gets a little anxious on momentous occasions in his babies' lives." He chuckled, idly reading the comics. Sirius was an exceptionally handsome man. He was tall and strong, his long black hair curled around his shoulders, and his grey eyes twinkled with mischief and youth.

Remus flipped a piece of bacon with slightly stronger ire, the meat slapping the hot frying pan and splattering grease all about the stove. "The first day of school is very important to a teenager! The entire social order of the school for the rest of the year is decided today. First impressions are of the utmost importance."

Harry moved to the table, sitting to Sirius' right, and began eating. He was a painfully slow eater, carefully tasting and chewing before he swallowed. Previous to his parent's death, Harry had gone through most of his life in such a manner. He was always the methodical one, slow to any kind of emotion, always thinking about every possible outcome before making a decision. Since James and Lily had passed away, though, Harry was much less temperate. He was far quicker to anger, and much more assertive than before.

The kitchen was bright with sunlight streaming in through the window Chairman Meow had made into his bed. It was painted a cheery shade of pastel blue, and there were knickknacks everywhere. Sirius and Remus had a serious problem when it came to useless little figurines, from the ceramic rooster perched on the refrigerator to the lawn gnome sitting on the countertop next to the stove. There were also a few highly personal things, though they were much rarer, such as the finger painted family portrait on the freezer door courtesy of their son.

Harry was finishing his last bite of melon when his bag emitted a shrill tone. "I'm guessing that would be Bonnie. She's either almost here or she's waiting outside." He stood up from the table and placed his dish and silverware in the sink before grabbing his bag at the entry to the kitchen. He pulled his phone out of his bag and nodded his head as he checked his messages. "Yep, Bonnie's out front. Bye Sirius, bye Remus. Tell Jeremy and Elena I said to have a good morning."

"Will do. Have a great day! Why is Bonnie here so early? Elena's not planning on leaving for another hour." Sirius replied, not looking up from his paper.

"Bonnie has cheerleading practice, I agreed to go in with her early so I can finish up my summer reading while she practices." Harry explained.

"I hope you have a good day, Harry! Don't let the other boys push you around. Did you remember to take your multivitamin? Do you have a calculator? What about a jacket? Do you need a jacket? Will they serve you lunch? Should I pack you a lunch? Oh, what if you run out of paper!" Remus choked out in a panic. He was clutching his spatula to his chest, ignorant of the massive grease stain accumulating on his button down shirt.

"Moony, dear, Harry will be fine. Why don't you come over here and I'll make you a nice cup of tea, hmm? It might help calm your nerves." Sirius placated, putting his paper down and raising a brow at Remus, who was still cradling the spatula to his chest.

"My nerves are fine, Sirius Black. Do forgive me if I'm the only person concerned about Harry's future well-being."

"I'll be fine, Remus. I believe I've kept Bonnie waiting long enough. Have a good day, you two." Harry chuckled, throwing his bag over his shoulder and backing out of the kitchen. "Try not to have an aneurysm when Jeremy and Elena have to leave, Remus. Elena always forgets something, just let it happen."

With that, Harry left the kitchen and exited the house, easily spotting Bonnie's blue Prius parallel parked in front of his home. Bonnie had been Harry's closest friend since elementary school, the two having bonded over a secret love for this boy in their second grade class. Tragically enough, he moved before the year was out, and Bonnie and Harry were left to console one another.

"Good morning, Lurch. Took you long enough to bring the car around this morning." Harry quipped as he slid into the passenger sit, smiling.

"Mmm, you're so funny, Harriet. It's good to know you're feeling better today." Bonnie pulled away from the the house, glancing at Harry.

His smile diminished slightly with her statement. "Yep yep. Today will be different. It's gonna be a good day."

They spent a few minutes in relative silence, though Bonnie kept casting Harry glances out of the corner of her eyes. Harry noticed that she appeared uncharacteristically tense. Both of her hands had a very firm grip on the steering wheel, and she was sitting much more upright than normal for her.

"Is everything alright?" Harry gave her an imploring look. "You look a little anxious. I'm not upset at you for the 'feeling better' comment or anything."

"No, no. It's nothing along those lines." Bonnie bit her lip then, eyes still on the road, a nervous habit she'd had for as long as Harry had known her. "Do you believe in magic, Harry?"

A single coal black brow arched upward. Harry was a little taken aback at the sudden subject change. "Like Houdini 'I'm going to get out of this underwater coffin in a straight jacket before I die in a horrendous manner,' or like abracadabra 'She turned me into a newt,' magic?"

"The second one." She paused. "Though I suppose the first one would also qualify. Just answer the question." Bonnie's lips were pursed, her delicate face a portrait of frustration. She turned the car into the parking lot of the High School.

"Well, I don't know. I suppose it could exist...magic, that is. If every single ethnic group in every corner of the world has a variation of a belief in something, I would guess that that something would be real. Even if in reality it's not exactly how it's portrayed in myth." He had turned to look out of his window as they pulled into the school. Harry turned back to her as his face became thoughtful. "Why are you asking me this, Bonnie?"

"What would you say if I told you that I could do magic?" Bonnie asked, pulling the car into a parking space. She turned to look at Harry as she shifted the car into park.

Harry began chuckling, "What, did you turn Grams into a frog?"

His laughter ceased as he took in Bonnie's stone serious facial expression. "What would you say if I told you that Grams could do magic also?"

"Oh, wow. You're serious aren't you, Bonnie?" Harry's bright green eyes were wide behind the frames of his glasses. "Okay, well, umm. Hmm. What can you do, then?"

She maintained a dead stare at him and he found himself unable to break the contact with her. His pink tongue darted out to wet his newly dry lips.

"Bonnie?" He asked nervously, and as he asked, a pencil floated in between the two of them, immediately breaking the tense stare. "Well, slap me twice and call me a bitch," he said breathily, completely focused on the pencil.

Bonnie erupted into a fit of laughter at this, breaking Harry's concentration and causing him to smile. The pencil dropped onto the gear shift as Bonnie laughed, and Harry's expression turned to concern as her mirth died down.

"Grams let the cat out of the bag, so to speak, on my birthday. She's been teaching me since then. At the moment I can't really do a lot more than parlor tricks like what you just saw. I'm a little psychic, though. I get visions sometimes by touching people, and occasionally I just know things. Things that I don't really have any reason to know." Bonnie explained, looking away from Harry and towards the school. "You can't tell anyone. At all. Not even Elena can know about this."

"Yes, because I would classify this as a topic that didn't require secrecy at all. I was contemplating the best time to tell Hermione, you know, before or after physics class." Harry smiled, reaching over and grabbing Bonnie's hand. "It's a little odd, I'm not gonna lie, but you're still the same Bonnie you were to me an hour ago. You're just a little more...juicy."

Bonnie turned her attention back to the raven haired boy, her eyes suspiciously wet. "Thank you. I was afraid you'd freak out and not speak to me again." She blinked repeatedly, trying to rid her eyes of the moisture.

"After the summer I've had, I'm in no position to rid myself of friends. I just wish you'd have told me this earlier. Moving into Sirius' and Remus' house would have been much easier." Harry's eyebrows raised as he considered the possibilities. "Oh, yes, this could be a very good thing indeed."

Bonnie laughed, "Come on, I have cheerleading practice, remember? You get to have an hour to ogle over the football team conditioning in the gym."

"I ogle over no one. I am there for your moral support, and if I happen to get a good view of number 17 while he does pull ups from the basketball goal, so be it."

"We need to find you a man..."

ooo

Eight o'clock found Bonnie and Harry standing at Bonnie's locker, the hallways abuzz with friends being reunited after three months of summer vacation. Harry was on his phone, thumbs ablaze as he texted Elena.

"Elena and Jeremy are here. She said that Jeremy is busy working on the skeezy Weasley girl out on the lawn. What's her name? Ron's sister, at any rate." Harry flipped his phone shut with a snap. "I don't like the whole situation. That girl is into some deep shit."

"It's Jeremy's life, you can't go all Mommy Dearest on him." Bonnie replied, grabbing her physics textbook. "You aren't even his actual sibling, and he's almost an adult now. His decisions are exactly that, his."

"Even if he's making the wrong decisions?" Harry frowned. "Also, 'not actual siblings' my ass. He's been my real brother ever since he melted my Winter Princess Barbie because he said she looked cold."

"You really need to let that go. Oprah says it's unhealthy to dwell on the death of a loved one." Bonnie closed her locker and turned back to Harry, who sniffled a little.

"She was just so beautiful..." He wiped an imaginary tear from under his eye.

"Harry!" Shrieked a female voice coming from their left. Suddenly, Harry found himself subsumed in enormous brown hair. Hermione Granger, the Regina George of Mystic Falls. She was a veritable genius, but preferred to use her superpowers for social maneuvering and backhanded compliments about your cute scarf that was on clearance or how that shirt makes you look much better than the one you wore yesterday.

She was evil and must be destroyed. Harry was sure of it.

"Hello, Hermione. How was your summer?" Harry was vainly trying to collect her hair and place it on the other side of her neck, but there was simply too much. He shot Bonnie a glare as she giggled at his predicament.

"Oh, it was lovely. I haven't seen you since," her voice dropped to a stage whisper, "the funeral. How are you doing? Are you okay? Is he okay?" She turned to Bonnie dramatically, flipping her hair back onto the side that Harry's face was still pressed to her on.

"Yes, he's good. He may be suffocating in your neck at the moment, though."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Hermione immediately released Harry from her grip. "You're looking much better. Those hideous purple bags under your eyes aren't nearly as bad as they were. Your hair looks a lot less dull and flat, too."

"Yes," Harry deadpanned. "I've found that the hunched back is also going away pretty quickly. Elena! Thank God you're here!"

Elena walked up with a smile. "Yeah, I finally left Jeremy on the lawn with Ginny, don't even get me started on what was going down there. How are you doing, Hermione?"

The bushy haired brunette smiled magnanimously at Elena. "I'm wonderful, Ron and I are going out tonight!"

Elena's eye twitched at the mention of her ex-boyfriend. She had no remaining feelings for her childhood friend, but the blatant snub at her was a little offensive. "I'm very happy for the two of you," Elena replied, her pretty face twisted into a tight smile. "Shouldn't we get to class now, guys?" She looked pointedly at Bonnie and Harry. Bonnie had an arm wrapped around Harry, who was eyeing Hermione as if she was a large roach.

"Yes! We wouldn't want to be late. Bye, Hermione!" Bonnie then turned Harry around and the three of them began walking to physics class. They made it about three steps before Elena came to an abrupt halt.

"Oh, my," she breathed out. "Who is that?"

The boy in question was walking into the main office. Elena was the only one who caught the strong jawbone, perfect complexion, and deeply set brooding eyes as he turned into the office.

"All I see is back," Harry complained.

"It's a hot back," Bonnie supplied.

"I'm guessing he's a transfer student. He's too hot to be a freshman. God, I hope he's not a freshman," Elena scowled as the thought went through her mind. "That would be so sad."

"I'm sensing Seattle." Bonnie raised a finely arched eyebrow at the boy's back. "He plays the guitar."

Harry cut his eyes up at his best friend, giving her a dead stare. As Elena sighed and made to continue walking to class, Harry idled back with Bonnie. "You're going to run this thing into the ground, huh?"

"Maybe," Bonnie replied in an amused tone. She smiled and sped up to catch up to Elena. Harry continued his lazy pace, waving on occasion at acquaintances that passed him. His eyes narrowed as he spotted Ginny and Jeremy, and as Jeremy split off from Ginny into the boy's bathroom, Harry ducked in after him.

"Jeremy!" Harry barked into the thankfully empty restroom, looking to confront his adoptive brother. The overly handsome boy's head appeared from behind a stall door.

"Harry? What the hell do you want?" Jeremy asked, clearly confused. "Wait, hold on a minute." His head disappeared into the stall. A flush sounded in the bathroom and Jeremy reappeared, mildly flustered by Harry's readily apparent anger. "What's going on?"

"What are you doing with that girl?" Harry lit into Jeremy. "She's bad news. She's just leading you on for sex and who knows what else. Ron let all of her business out to air when he was still with Elena, and Jeremy, this is not going to end well for you. She's using you."

"What the hell do you know, Harry? She's just got a lot going on. We're good for each other." Jeremy gave Harry a scathing glare.

"Oh, really Jeremy? Good for one another? Really? I must have been mistaken then, because I was under the impression that she's dating Tyler Lockwood again. Yes, yes, I guess I was completely wrong in assuming the worst about her relationship with you because of her need to be in an abusive relationship with the mayor's son, who is totally ashamed of her."

"Stop being such an asshole, Harry!" Jeremy shouted at the smaller boy. "Just because you don't have any form of a love life doesn't give you the right to rip other people's apart."

"Whatever, Jeremy. Do what you want.'" Harry's face was flushed with anger and he had advanced so he was practically nose-to-chest with his younger brother. He sighed and visibly deflated a little. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

"Yeah, that whole ambush people in a bathroom and yell them into submission thing you've got going on is very caring." Jeremy was still glaring, looking down at Harry. "I'm outta here." He pushed past the smaller boy and nearly knocked over a guy coming in the restroom as he was leaving.

Harry squeezed his eyes closed and clenched his fists at his sides. "Ugh...dammit!" As Harry shouted, a sink behind him dropped, the porcelain shattering as it hit the ground and a fountain of water erupting from where the sink had been. Harry turned around quickly, shellshocked by the sink's sudden explosion.

He turned to leave the bathroom and ran into the transfer student, who had been standing behind him. He made the mistake of making eye contact with the boy as he stumbled backward. The other boy's green eyes pierced through Harry, leaving him paralyzed. Harry stood in awe of the boy until water from the impromptu water fountain hit the bottom of his jeans, startling out of his reverie. They shuffled awkwardly around one another for a second, Harry trying not to stare at the boy's mesmerizing eyes or statue-perfect skin.

"Ah, sorry," Harry finally squeaked out as he managed to slip around the larger boy. "I'm just gonna go tell someone about this." He was backing out of the bathroom, facing the new boy. "How weird, yeah? I didn't really know that sinks could spontaneously combust."

He darted into the hallway as soon as his back hit the door, desperate to escape.

ooo

Harry had kept his bathroom encounter with Jeremy, the sink, and the new kid to himself when he'd rejoined Elena and Bonnie in physics. The rest of his morning was mild, though lunch had tested his patience. Harry estimated that at least twice the population of Venezuela had asked him if he was okay or leveled him with a pitying stare that he was getting all too accustomed to.

Also, Hermione had informed him that the new boy's name was Stefan Salvatore, he was a military brat who had lived in Mystic Falls as a child, he's a Gemini, and his favorite color was blue. Harry had idly informed her that she would have a future at TMZ should she ever look into it.

After lunch, with a worn temper and full stomach, Harry wandered into his history classroom with Bonnie in tow, only to find new boy -Stefan, Harry mentally corrected- already seated in the back of the room. Harry took a seat as Dr. Binns launched into his fascinating speech regarding colonial America.

Fascinating, indeed.

Shortly into the lecture, Harry could feel the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He knew someone in the room was boring holes into the back of his head, and was pretty sure he knew who. The vast majority of the class was firmly asleep, leaving only about five people in the whole room conscious. What he didn't know, however, was that his bag had started to float above the floor ever so slightly in his discomfort. Bonnie noticed this, saw Salvatore's focus on Harry, and frantically sent the black haired boy a text message.

Harry started as his bag vibrated shortly against his leg, causing it to drop to the floor, and pulled his phone out to discretely read Bonnie's message.

_The new boy is staring at you like a thick, juicy steak. -B_

Harry smiled slightly and replied before he put his phone back in his bag to keep Binns from catching him. He settled back into his seat and made it a point to focus more on the lecture than his discomfort.

ooo

The rest of the day proved uneventful, more piteous glances, more obligatory queries about his well being, and more uninspired answers on his part.

After school, Bonnie dropped Harry off at his house, and Harry took his and Elena's shared car to the cemetery his parents were buried in.

He walked through the unseasonable chill, pulling his light black jacket tighter on himself and putting his hood on. His messenger bag was slung on his shoulder and he was still wearing his tightly fitted dark jeans and red t-shirt from school, though with a jacket now.

The graveyard was rather picturesque, as much as a place where corpses reside can be, Harry mused. There was a man-made lake, the whole complex had been built on rolling green hills, and there were plenty of trees. The afternoon had become overcast, and there was a relatively strong breeze.

Harry stopped at two relatively new headstones, fresh flowers still on the plots.

"Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad." Harry whispered, sitting back on his haunches in front of the stones. I thought I would come visit today, since it was the first day of school. I promised myself that it would be different today. Easier. It wasn't. I made it through without running back home and jumping into bed, though. I suppose that's a good thing. I love you two."

He pulled his diary out of the messenger bag, sat on the ground by the headstones, and began to write.

_Dear Diary, _

_I made it through the day. I must have said "I'm fine, thanks," at least thirty seven times. I didn't mean it once, and no one noticed. When someone asks how are you, they really don't want an answer._

He looked up and gave a shout as he fell back. A bird had taken up residence on his mother's headstone, and crowed at Harry as he looked up, startling him into falling and dropping his diary. Harry pulled himself up rather ungracefully, and chucked ruefully at himself.

"Well hello, there." Harry readjusted his glasses on his nose, the sleek black frames having been knocked crooked in his fall. "You gave me a bit of a scare, Mr. Raven."

He tilted his head, examining the bird. Larger than a normal crow, the bird somehow managed to carry an air of arrogance. It was perched on the stone regally, as if deigning to grant Harry his presence.

Harry shook his head at himself, "You've finally lost it, Harry. Birds can not have superiority complexes. They have no thought processes aside from surviving and procreating."

The bird then squawked at Harry indignantly and flapped its wings at the boy.

"Ruffled your feathers, have I?" The slight teen chuckled at his pun. "You are a majestic crow, though, sir." Harry smiled, trying to placate his new avian friend. The bird gave a quiet caw of approval at Harry's apology and preened itself, causing the boy to laugh again.

Harry looked around to see that twilight had begun to fall and a deep fog was setting in on the cemetery. Harry hmm-ed aloud and stood up, brushing the debris off of his jeans. "I suppose I have to leave you now. Watch over my parents, hmm? Goodbye."

The boy picked his bag up from the ground, slid it onto his shoulder, and began making his way back towards the parking lot at the head of the cemetery. He was taking in his surroundings as he walked, not looking where he was going, and tripped on a rock.

Harry cried out, scraping his knee on the sidewalk and knocking his glasses off as he hit the ground heavily. "Shit," he hissed as he sat up.

"Are you alright?" A man asked from down the sidewalk.

Harry looked up to see a young man hurrying towards him. He was tall and had broad shoulders as far as Harry could tell. Between the fog, dimming light, and his lack of eyewear, the stranger could very well be Danny Devito's twin brother, though, for all Harry could see.

The stranger kneeled next to Harry and handed him his glasses. His features came into focus, and Harry was taken aback by the most beautiful man he'd ever seen. A pair of icy blue eyes were set under highly arched eyebrows, his hair was very dark, artfully mussed, and swept across his forehead. Harry was pretty sure that the Pope himself would consider the young man's full lips a sin of the highest order.

"If I said no, would you give me mouth to mouth?" Harry asked, slack jawed at the gorgeous man kneeling mere inches away from him. A deep flush came over Harry's face as he realized what his hormone-addled response had been. Mortification overtook him. The man merely laughed darkly in response.

"I mean, yes! I'm fine! I just took a little spill, and back there, there was this bird. It was all very Hitchcock for a second. The bird turned out to be pretty cool, though. A little touchy, but he was decent." The blush remained on Harry's skin as he rambled.

"I'm Damon Salvatore," The taller man introduced himself. He looked the smaller youth up and down, perusing the slim torso and legs before bringing his eyes to meet stunned green ones. "And if you ever find yourself in need, or just having a slow day, I would be more than happy to give you mouth to mouth."

"Hi," Harry smiled with no small amount of chagrin. "I'm Harry, it's nice to meet you." He gave a slight shiver as the chill started to seep through his jacket. Harry looked about and saw that night was almost upon them, the Sun mostly down.

"I suppose I should be on my way now," Harry said. He allowed the larger man to pull him up to standing. He was eye level with Damon's collar bone. Harry's hand lingered in blue eyed man's significantly larger one.

"In that case, good night Harry. I'll be seeing you around." With that, Damon nodded his head at the smaller youth and, dragging his hand away at length, let go and continued down the sidewalk away from Harry.

"Damn," Harry whispered. He smiled softly and looked down at his left hand. A loud caw from a tree nearby broke him from his reverie. He looked into it to see his crow friend sitting there watching him. Harry smiled brightly at the bird.

"Alright, alright, I'm going!" Harry cried at the raven, which crowed loudly in response and hopped so it was facing the parking lot.

"You're so pushy. I don't know if this relationship is going to make it in the long run. I'm feeling suffocated already."

Harry smiled the whole way back to his car.

ooo

A/n: Whoa, that was way longer than I expected. Please don't tell me that certain things didn't happen in the series how they're happening in the chapter. I'm aware of that. As it says in the author's note, I'm pretty much making confetti out of canon events and re-ordering, eliminating, or completely changing them to fit my whims.

I'm kinda just picking and choosing what I like best out of book canon and tv series canon, and then smashing it together with a little Harry Potter. Just go with it and enjoy the ride.

Read and review please, this is my first foray into fanfiction.

: )


	2. II

Disclaimer: I still own neither of these lovely franchises.

Warnings: Same as before, plus underage drinking and sex and so on. None of which I condone. Just throwing it out there.

**II**

"_Would you always, maybe sometimes,_

_Make it easy?_

_Take your time."_

_-Two Weeks, Grizzly Bear_

ooo

"Elena! Hurry up! Bonnie and Hermione are already waiting for us at the Grill," Harry shouted up the stairs. Elena was perpetually behind schedule, a fact that drove Harry to insanity. If left to their own devices, Harry would always be a half an hour early and Elena a half an hour late. Their parents thought of it as the two balancing each other out. "I'm going to leave you if you aren't down here in thirty seconds!"

"Relax! I'm ready," Elena appeared at the top of the staircase, hopping on one foot and putting on a shoe. "Just because you couldn't find your mystery lover at school today doesn't give you an excuse to be grouchy."

"I wasn't looking!" Harry scowled at his twin, "and I am not grouchy. He's also not a mystery, either. He was just a nice guy who helped me up at the cemetery. Point in case, Elena, I met the guy in a cemetery. That is a terrible story to have to tell my future adopted Asian babies."

Elena smirked at her brother, having descended the stairs and now standing next to Harry. "Really? Not a mystery at all? What's his favorite color? His age? His favorite beanie baby?"

"You are atrocious. It's not that serious, anyway. Let's go, we promised the girls we'd meet them fifteen minutes ago." The green eyed boy shooed his sister towards the door, sliding on a pair of green flip flops -to match his v necked t-shirt- as he went.

"It is completely that serious. You crush so hard on guys. Remember when we found out Scott Tegan was banging Peppita when we were freshmen? You cried for two weeks and wrote a series of poems entitled _'As Dark as an Oil Stain- The Memoirs of the Unwanted.' _" Elena's doe brown eyes were alight as she gave her twin a snarky grin.

"You, madam, are a heinous twat. I thought we agreed that we would never speak of Scott again? Fucking Peppita...besides, this situation is nothing like that. I've spoken to the guy once. I have no feelings whatsoever for," Harry opened the door, "–Damon!"

The blue eyed man was standing on the other side of the frame, cocky visage firmly in place. "Hey, there. My brother and I were in the neighborhood, and I thought I'd give this back to you," Damon had Harry's journal in his hand. Stefan Salvatore was standing a few feet behind the taller male, alternating between looking uncomfortable and glaring at Damon's back. "You left it at the cemetery. I thought you might like it back."

"Oh, thank you!" Harry smiled at the taller man, taking the book from his hand. "I'm glad you saved it from the hands of any unsavory dead people."

"You have no idea," Damon's smirk grew larger, if at all possible. "I didn't read it, either. In case you were wondering."

"Such a gentleman," Harry cast his eyes away from the man wearing all black in front of him. "Hello, Stefan. How are you today?"

"I am well," The statuesque boy replied. "Thank you for asking.

By this point, Harry had exited the house. This was mostly due to Elena shoving him out of the doorframe so she could get a look at the handsome brothers on their doorstep. Damon opened his mouth to speak, but Elena beat him to the punch.

"We were just on our way to the Mystic Grill. Why don't the two of you join us? The two of us were meeting some friends, but we're easily a half an hour late, since Harry takes so long to get ready." Elena continued right through her brother's angry huff, "the two of you should just come with us instead. It'll be fun!"

She shot Damon her most winning smile, hoping for an affirmative response.

"We have-" Stefan was interrupted by his brother.

"I couldn't turn down an offer from such a pretty girl," Damon aimed that devilish smile at Elena and offered the now flushed girl his arm. She took it, and the two began down the walkway. Neither of them paid any attention to the scathing glares sent to them by their respective siblings.

Only Stefan noticed Harry's eyes flash a luminescent green while the wind picked up suddenly.

ooo

The Mystic Grill, referred to merely as 'The Grill' more often than not, was a bit of a dive to be quite honest. It was a pretty small establishment, dimly lit at best, with the bar taking the stage dead center of the restaurant. There were some couches and beanbag chairs near the door, with the rest of the Grill outfitted in tables and chairs of a nondescript wood. The décor was courtesy of every college memorabilia store in the state of Virginia, supplemented by shot glasses, empty bottles of various liquors, and some pool tables.

It was, quite simply, the coolest place in Mystic Falls.

"So," Bonnie began, "you've told me that his zodiac sign, favorite color, and name. What else ya got by now?" She was seated across from Hermione, the two having ordered and finished their meals while waiting for the Potter twins. They were now conversing over dessert, which is to say Bonnie was listening to Hermione while she ate a slice of chocolate s'more cheesecake and divulged everyone's secrets to the caramel skinned girl.

The bushy haired girl 'mm-ed' in excitement, her mouth wrapped around a spoon containing a bite of her cheesecake. "He lives in the boarding house up by Wickery Bridge. He has an older brother, who I haven't seen yet. We can only hope that he's as attractive as Stefan. Could you imagine? Two of them," she trailed off.

"I think Harry didn't give you enough credit when he said you could work at TMZ," Bonnie was dumbfounded. "You could work for the CIA."

Hermione just laughed while she finished the last bite of her cheesecake. "And have you heard about Jeremy Black? He's all over Ginny Weasley. It's so sad. The girl can't stand him, she's so over the moon for that jackass Tyler. I just can't help but feel bad for poor Ron."

Bonnie smiled indulgently at her brunette friend, "I wonder why?"

"He's always trying to take care of that mess of a sister he has. He's always so supportive of Harry and Elena. He's head over heels for Elena, and she just keeps dumping him. It's disgusting," The brunette scowled. It was purely platonic concern for her friend's well being, Hermione thought. She didn't quite manage to convince herself.

"Speak of the devil," Bonnie murmured, diverting their attention to the entrance of the Grill. Hermione turned in her chair to see Ron approaching the girls with Tyler Lockwood in tow.

"Hello ladies," The red-head greeted. "What's got the two of you looking so down?" He took a seat to Hermione's left, leaving the opposite chair for Tyler.

"Nothing," Hermione chirped. "Just girl talk. How're you doing?"

"I've been good," Ron smiled at her.

"Don't let him lie to you like that," Tyler interjected with a slightly malicious smile on his face. "Ron's been more angsty than an Evanescence album ever since Elena dropped his ass."

Hermione's face frosted at the mention of the girl's name. Bonnie, sensing an immediate disaster given the socialite's predisposition to speaking before thinking, cut her off.

"Hey, Ron. Why don't you come with me to get a refill really fast?" Bonnie pointed at the fountain dispensers on the other end of the Grill.

"Umm...sure?" The freckled boy responded. He stood up to his moderately staggering height, dwarfing the petite girl waiting for him, and the two made off for a refill.

"Sorry about that," Bonnie muttered once they were out of earshot from Tyler and Hermione. "Tyler needs a muzzle or a shock collar."

The large boy chuckled, "He's right, though. Ever since Elena ended it, I've just been...eh." His watery blue eyes were scrunched into a frown. "Add that to Mom taking off plus trying to take care of Ginny...it's just been hard. I never thought I'd have to take care of my older sister. She's acting like a child, though."

The two paused while Bonnie filled her cup with Mello Yello. "I would like to say I understand, but I don't. I'm an only child, and I've always had Grams there for me. I am, however, here for you anytime you need to talk. Even if you just need to have a bitchfest."

"Thanks, Bonnie." A blush started to overcome Ron's face.

"And, about Elena, just give it more time."

"More time, huh?" Ron was looking straight ahead, where Elena had just entered the Mystic Grill. She was giving the tall young man beside her a brilliant smile, and was followed by Harry and Stefan, who seemed to be chatting amiably. The four approached the table where Bonnie and Ron had just regained their seats. An awkward moment ensued as Ron glared at Damon and Stefan interchangeably and Hermione leveled Elena the same stare.

"Umm...I'm just going to pull up another table," Harry made to walk away, desperate to end the moment.

"I'll help you," Damon strode off after the smaller boy, leaving Stefan and Elena to deal with the hostile

looks and awkward silence.

"You should consider yourself lucky that Ron doesn't have heat vision," Harry said to the dark haired man as they grabbed another table with four seats on the opposite end of the Grill. "Or you would be a pile of goo on the floor right now."

"I kinda got the feeling that tall, fair, and freckly wasn't going to be forming an unauthorized Damon Salvatore fansite anytime soon." Damon looked unimpressed at Ron's reactions.

"He's a nice guy. He and Elena had a thing going on, but she broke up with him this summer. He's just mad you're barging in on his territory." The two had almost reached the others with the table.

"Well, he has nothing to worry about," Damon leveled Harry with an almost predatory smile. "Elena's not the twin I'm interested in."

Bright green eyes widened behind glasses as Harry dropped his half of the table to the ground. Luckily, Damon merely slid his half of the table up against the one Bonnie, Tyler, Ron, and Hermione were sitting at, Tyler having moved his chair from the end to Hermione's side.

"Took you guys long enough," Elena complained, pulling a chair up beside Bonnie. Stefan sat at the end of the table, leaving Damon the seat opposite Elena and forcing Harry to squeeze beside Damon.

"Sorry," Harry replied. "I had to find a table big enough for you. It took a bit longer than expected." His face was still flushed from Damon's comment, a fact his sister noticed immediately.

"Yes, I need the large table. You're the one that's turning red from walking across a restaurant and back."

"Ladies," Bonnie interjected, smiling at the two. "You're both beautiful. In more important matters, are you going to the party tomorrow?"

"Party?" Harry and Elena asked in stereo.

"Yep," Hermione answered. The thought of the party fixed her foul mood slightly. "There's going to be a party at the Falls tomorrow night. The two of you are very welcome, also." She turned her attention to the too-handsome Salvatore brothers.

"Of course we'll be there," Elena answered. "It's the perfect opportunity for Damon and Stefan to meet people in Mystic Falls, and what's a party without Harry and I?"

Stefan merely raised an eyebrow at Elena, while Damon gave the table a lazy smile. "It seems that we've been answered for."

The conversation at the table switched to more mundane topics, the usual 'this teacher is a bitch,' 'you'll never believe what Hannah Whitmire did under the bleachers yesterday,' type chatter.

"So, Mr. Potter," Damon murmured to Harry. The younger of the two was unaware, but Damon was subtly manipulating the others to overlook their discussion. All except Stefan, who was currently wrapped up in Elena. "You don't seem particularly interested in this shindig tomorrow."

"Well," Harry bit his lip and looked up into icy blue eyes. "To be honest, I'm not. I've never really been the social butterfly. That's always been Elena's job. I'll probably just find a bottle of vodka and a dark corner somewhere to make fun of people with Bonnie." Harry trailed off with a chuckle.

"Mmm," The simple noise sounded nearly made Harry moan when it came from Damon, "Would you consider being my date for the party? Maybe that'll brighten your evening a little."

"Someone certainly thinks highly of themselves," Harry laughed. His eye contact with Damon became very intense all of a sudden, and he found it hard to concentrate on anything other than the pale blue of Damon's eyes. Harry shook his head to break the trance, "I'll have to turn you down, though. You're going to have to work a little harder than that."

Damon's eyebrows drew together in mild shock before straightening back out. That predatory grin from earlier reappeared on his face. "I happen to enjoy a good challenge."

Harry wondered idly if this was what a cheese danish felt like when someone stared it down in a Starbucks.

ooo

The next day found Harry bored out of his mind in Dr. Binns' History class. This was normal for the man, who made it a habit to speak in the most uninspiring tone possible. He had been runner-up for Teacher of the Year at Mystic Falls High School since the school was founded. Rumor had it that he'd been teaching in Mystic Falls since the _town_ was founded.

Harry would not have been surprised.

The only time Binns' class was ever interesting was when he-

"Miss Bennett? How many casualties resulted in the Battle of Willow Creek at the end of the Civil War?" Binns was peering at Bonnie over his glasses.

The man was in the habit of talking until he bored himself, and then grilling his students with questions he hadn't lectured about to provide himself some entertainment.

"Umm...a lot?" Bonnie questioned, causing an outburst of giggles in the class. "I'm not sure, but like, a whole lot." Her brown eyes were in full on big and innocent mode at the teacher, pleading for some mercy.

"Cute becomes dumb in an instant, Ms. Bennett," Binns turned his attention away from her. "Mr. Weasley. Would you like to take this opportunity to overcome your embedded jock stereotype?"

"No," Ron answered, blushing a shade of red that Harry was sure tomatoes everywhere would envy. "It's okay, Dr. Binns. I'm cool with it."

"Harry, surely you can enlighten us about one of the town's most important historical events?"

Harry prayed to every deity that he knew of in the hopes that answer would come to him. The twins had always been brainy and slightly overachieving in school, but after their parent's deaths, Harry's focus had drifted away from school and onto other things. You know, like not being in a constant state of grief.

"I'm sorry," Harry shook his head. "I can't. I don't know the answer." He cast his eyes down at the desk, hoping that Binns would just move on to the next person and leave him be.

"I was willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, Harry." Binns lit into the green eyed boy. Harry was seething at the comment. His obvious anger was giving both Stefan and Bonnie a cause to worry, having seen the results of Harry's other emotional outbursts. "But the personal excuses end-"

"There were three hundred and forty six casualties." Stefan interrupted the man. He was seated in the back of the classroom, where he had stared Harry down from the previous day. "Unless you're counting local civilians."

"That's correct," Binns assented, "Mr. Savatore. Any relations to the original settlers here?"

Stefan bit his lip as if amused by the question, "Distant."

"Good, good. Except, of course, there were no civilian casualties at the Battle of Willow Creek."

"Actually, there were, sir. Twenty seven, in fact. Confederate soldiers fired on the church, believing it to be housing weapons. They were wrong. The Founders Archives are stored in Civil Hall if you'd like to brush up on your facts."

The class erupted into whispers and chuckles at the comment, after years of waiting, someone had finally out-Binns-ed Dr. Binns. It was glorious.

Harry searched for a pair of green eyes over the din, and upon finding them mouthed 'Thank You' at Stefan. Harry earned a nod from the stoic boy, and then he settled back into his seat, oddly pleased with Stefan sort of coming to his defense.

ooo

The Falls was kind of a misnomer, if Harry was going to be completely honest. There was a waterfall, however anemic it might be, but really it looked like a campground that had been pillaged by a band of seventeen year old Vikings.

"So, what do you think of Stefan?" Bonnie asked the petite boy, drawing his attention back to the party, taking a swig of her drink.

"He's nice, I guess. He saved my ass in History today," Harry's face scrunched up and he stuck his tongue out after he took a drink from his cup.

"Man up, little girl," Bonnie laughed. "I meant his looks, anyway."

"Okay, so he's a little pretty." Harry admitted, still scowling at his blue plastic cup. The boy was dressed to kill. He had on a deep-cut dark gray v-necked shirt, and a pair of black jeans that looked like they were painted on his slim legs. Add this to the black boots peeking out from under the jeans and the leather wristbands adorning his arm, and Harry was pretty hot, all dark except his fair skin and bright green eyes.

"He's got like this total romance-novel stare going on," Bonnie tried to mimic it to Harry, squinting at him and stepping closer to the boy.

Harry burst into laughter at her display, "Bonnie Bennett, stop hitting on me right this second. I don't want any boys to think we're together. Besides, however romance novel-y Stefan may be, his brother is the one I'm worried about. I asked him to make out with me when I first met him."

Bonnie was slack-jawed at that statement. "You what! I always knew you were easy, Harry Potter."

"I had just fallen. I think I had a concussion," Harry laughed, taking another sip. "He hit on me in the Mystic Grill, too. Asked me to be his 'date' for the party tonight."

"Then why are you not on his arm? You could have been the Belle of the Ball," Bonnie turned around, gesturing her arm at the rest of the party. More specifically, there was a couple making out on a tree stump right where she had turned to.

"I've always wanted to be Ms. Teen Pregnancy," Harry said wistfully. "I turned him down. He had been flirting with my sister like thirty seconds before he asked me out."

"You are the dumbest smart person I have ever met," The cheerleader deadpanned. "Where is Elena, anyways?"

"Last I saw she was trying to talk to Jeremy. Or turn water into wine, you know, something impossible like that." Harry frowned at the thought of his brother.

"Look up there! It looks like Hermione's found Stefan." Bonnie pointed up the hill from the fire the two were standing at. Sure enough, Stefan was standing there uncomfortably while Hermione had him cornered.

"Poor guy," Harry smiled a little lopsidedly at the sight.

"Poor girl," A new voice interjected. Bonnie and Harry turned to see Damon Salvatore standing behind them, as they had both been looking at Stefan and Hermione. "My lovely little brother is about as interesting as wallpaper paste."

Damon was looking as delicious as ever, from the leather jacket to the studded belt and black shirt. All of it tight on his muscled form. Harry gave a mental sigh at the man buffet in front of him.

"I'm sure he's not that boring." Bonnie frowned at a new thought, "Although, he did have a serious nerd out in history class. I guess closet nerd could be a kind of cute thing. Anyway, I am going to get another drink." She held up her empty bottle, "You two have fun."

Damon smirked at Harry, causing the other boy to avert his eyes and scuff his shoes on the ground.

"Why don't we go for a walk?" Damon asked, "Too loud and I don't dance." He eyed the teenagers jumping around them with mild disdain.

"That sounds good," Harry replied, looking through his lashes at Damon. The two began walking away from the party, up a pathway leading to a small wooden bridge over a tiny stream from the waterfall.

"You know, you and your brother are kinda the talk of the town," Harry told the handsome boy on his right.

"Really? Are we?" Damon asked, eyes holding some mirth.

"Yep. You've both got the whole 'mysterious' vibe going on," Harry answered. "It doesn't hurt that you're ridiculously hot."

Damon beamed at Harry and stood so the light would catch him favorably. The two had come to a stop in the center of the bridge, Harry leaning his elbows on the railing, cup over the water. "Don't give me that face," Harry laughed softly. "I'm not telling you anything that you aren't aware of."

"You've got both of those things going on for you, too, though." Damon informed the smaller boy. "Those jeans make me want to do terrible things to you."

Harry blushed at the statement, "Why is it that every time I'm around you, I feel like I know how a double cheeseburger feels before it gets eaten?" He looked up at Damon, cheeks still pink.

Damon laughed loudly at that one, "You have no idea, little boy. You've also got the mysterious thing working for you. You're like a little broken doll. Pretty and sad, everyone wants to fix you."

Harry's smile dimmed, "What makes you think I'm sad?"

"Well, we did kinda meet in a graveyard," Damon answered, void of emotion.

Harry chuckled, "I suppose that's true. I'll have you know that I don't habit graveyards often. I have friends among the living, also."

Damon merely smiled at the shorter boy in response. He reached up with a large hand and ruffled the boy's perpetually messy black hair. "Sure you do! So, what is your story China Doll?"

"You don't wanna know," Harry replied, looking back out over the small creek. "It's not exactly normal teenage party talk."

"I'm not exactly your normal teenage partygoer," Damon responded, still looking at Harry.

"Last spring," Harry started with a sigh. "My parents drove their car off of Wickery Bridge and into a lake. I was in the backseat. I survived. Neither of them did." He finished the story with a gulp of the mystery liquor in his cup. Harry wondered idly if that was what engine oil tasted like.

"So, that's my story," Harry finished, turning to Damon. The taller of the two was eyeing Harry intently.

"You won't be sad forever," Damon said, gaze still intense.

Harry offered the dark haired boy a wan smile in response.

"Harry!" The two heard a call from the party.

The boy frowned in response, "That's my sister. Come on!" He rushed back down to the main campground, Damon in tow, and nearly fell out when he saw what awaited him. "Shit!"

Ron was holding his sister's body, blood covering his arms as it flowed freely from her neck. Jeremy was near catatonic beside Ron, and Elena ran up to Harry as soon as he appeared in her line of sight. Most of the partygoers had dispersed, not wanting to get caught when an ambulance or police officer arrived.

"Ginny was attacked by an animal. I was talking to Stefan when Jeremy stormed off into the woods, I followed him and we found her on the ground," Elena was clearly panicked. "I called an ambulance, they should be here soon. I'm gonna go find Jeremy," She turned to find their brother.

Harry's eyes were focused solely on Ginny's wound, though. Blood was seeping from her throat, and the girl's skin was taking on a gray pallor. Harry realized that she would likely bleed to death before help came. Damon paid rapt attention as the boy's eyes flashed into a glowing green. The wound on Ginny's neck began to heal slowly, the bloodflow stalling out and the existing blood thickening over the gashes.

Bonnie rushed up next to Harry and put an arm around his waist, knocking the boy from his trance and stopping the healing process before Ginny's recovery became suspicious. Harry blinked several times before wobbling backwards slightly, "I don't feel so good."

Bonnie frowned, "It's probably just some nerves from this. I'll take you home, yeah? Elena can take care of Jeremy and Ron."

"Okay, that sounds good. Let me just say goodbye to Damon." Harry replied, still dazed slightly. He turned out of Bonnie's arm to see nothing beside him. He kept looking and saw no sign of Damon, nor of Stefan that he could see. He narrowed his eyes in thought, but another dizzy spell hit him and he almost fell to the ground.

Bonnie's arm wrapped around him again, this time in support. "I gotcha, Harry. Let's get you outta here. I'll text Elena once we get to the car."

ooo

"You know, you left that girl alive tonight," Stefan announced, not even turning around to see his brother. "Very clumsy of you."

"Yes," Damon replied, walking into Stefan's room in the boarding house. "I suppose it would have been, but I didn't attack her."

"You'll excuse me if I find that hard to believe." Stefan turned to face his older brother. The two beautiful men were on opposite ends of the room. The younger of the two was giving a disapproving stare, while the elder was smiling ferally.

"It is rather out of character, I'll give you that. But, brother mine, it's true. If, however, a newborn happened to be under my thrall and attacked her, then that would be a whore of a different color." Damon smirked at the younger of the two.

"You can't pull these kind of stunts here," Stefan snarled. "This is a small town, do you want to get killed? Especially considering the town's history."

"She looks a lot like Katherine, doesn't she?" Damon asked, changing the subject as he moseyed over to Stefan's picture of Katherine. "Elena?"

"She's not Katherine," Stefan responded, frowning at the implication.

"Let's hope not." Damon rolled his eyes. "We all remember how that ended."

"Leave her alone," The green eyed vampire threatened.

"Psh, she's not the one I'm after." Damon's tone was amused. "No, she's a pale imitation of the one I'm after. The vampires in the Tomb, Stefan? They're alive, and I need someone powerful enough to open it."

Stefan's face was stone-still. "Alive? So...Katherine is alive? How?"

"Emily Bennett." Damon replied lazily, draping himself over a a chair.

"Katherine's handmaiden?"

"Ah-ah-ah..." Damon corrected. "Not just a handmaiden, but also a powerful witch. Descended from the witches of Salem, and the Druids of Celtic lore before that. I made a deal with her. I would look over the witches of her line, and she would save the lives of the vampires in the Tomb. She cast a spell on the Tomb to keep them safe from the fire, unfortunately, it kept them sealed in the Tomb. The curse can only be broken when a comet passes over Mystic Falls."

"This year," Stefan supplied.

"Smart _and _pretty," Damon drawled. "With a witch of sufficient power and the crystal Emily used to seal the Tomb, I can unseal it and rescue Katherine."

"You need a magic user? Are you planning on using Bonnie?" Stefan asked, raising an eyebrow at his older brother.

"That hedge-witch? No. She'd kill herself trying. She'd need the help of her old-as-dirt Grandmother, and still one of them probably wouldn't make it. No, I've got my eyes set on a much better prize. He has twice the power that Emily Bennett wielded, and he looks much better in tight pants," Damon grinned wickedly.

"You can't possibly-" Stefan was interrupted.

"Oh, but I can. You can have Elena, little brother. Her twin? Well, he's mine. When I'm through with him, he'll open the Tomb because he wants to, and I'll give him to Katherine as a present. I think he'll look rather pretty with a nice green bow. Brings out his eyes and whatnot."

"I won't let you have him," Stefan's face was menacing. "You can't just use people like this."

"Sure I can!" Damon responded brightly. He stood up, and in a second had grabbed his brother by the throat and hurled him through a window and onto the driveway of the house from Stefan's second story room. "And I'd like to see you stop me."

ooo

At a coffee shop several miles away, Bonnie and Hermione were sitting together while Bonnie waited on Hermione to sober up so they could go home.

"Why didn't he go for me? Stefan, that is," Hermione looked up from the steaming mug in her hands. Her hair was still large, but it curled in a cute manner down her shoulders. Her brown eyes were tired, and showed the strain of her evening. "How come the guys that I want never want me?"

"Did you even really want Stefan?" Bonnie asked in response, taking a sip of her drink. "You don't know him."

"Yes...no," The other girl replied. She looked back down at her coffee, "I'm inappropriate, and I always say the wrong things. Always. A-and Elena, she always says the right things. She doesn't even try, and they always go for her. Every time. First Ron, now Stefan...it's every guy."

"Did you ever think that it might be because she _doesn't_ try?" Bonnie asked the distraught girl. "Besides, getting boys to like you...that's not a competition, Hermione."

Hermione mulled over Bonnie's statements for a few seconds before turning up from her cup. "Yes. Yes, it is."

ooo

Ron Weasley sat in an uncomfortable chair in a white room that smelled of disinfectant and mothballs, holding his sister's hand as she lay unconscious.

The girl in question was as white as a ghost. Her long, fire-red hair fanned behind her, and her body looked frail in the stock gown and scratchy hospital sheets. Her red lashes began to twitch slightly, and Ron looked up from their entwined hands to see her begin to wake up.

"Hey, Ginny," He whispered. Her chocolate brown eyes blinked a few times, trying to focus on her brother.

Her reply was faint, "Ron..."

"Shh." He responded, watery blue eyes gazing on her softly. "It's okay, don't try to talk."

Her fine red eyebrows turned downward in determination.

"V...vampire."

ooo

_Dear Diary, _

_I couldn't have been more wrong. I thought that I could smile and nod my way through it. Pretend that it would all be okay. I had a plan. I wanted to change who I was. Create a life as someone new, someone without the past, without the pain. Someone alive. But it's not that easy. The bad things stay with you. They follow you. You can't escape them, as much as you want to. All you can do is be ready for the good. So when it comes? You invite it in, because you need it. I need it._

Harry looked up from his journal and looked out the window. The evening was beautiful, the stars were staggering in number and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. He looked down and there, on the walkway leading up to his house, was Damon Salvatore. Harry smiled softly to himself and closed the book in his lap. He gave a quick pet to Chairman Meow, settled on Harry's pillow, and he went downstairs to see Damon.

He opened the door and smiled tentatively at the handsome man on the other side, "Hi."

"I know it's late," Damon scratched the back of his head ruefully. "But, I needed to know that you were okay."

Harry bit his lip. "You know, for months, that's all anyone's wanted to know from me. If I was okay. I always tell them I'll be fine. Every time." Harry's lips were pursed at the taller of the two, who had closed in much of the space between them.

"Do you ever mean it?" Damon asked, his eyes searching for something in Harry's.

"Ask me tomorrow," The green eyed boy's lips turned up at Damon. "Would you like to come in? Sirius and Remus are in bed, but I don't think they'd mind us talking. I'm the good child, after all."

"Yeah, I'd like that." Damon smiled at the younger boy. For once, this smile was neither predatory or malicious, Harry noted. It was a genuine, pleased smile. Harry gave a brilliant smile in response and allowed the other to go into the house first.

Harry smiled up at the stars and closed the door.

ooo

A/n: Again, _much_ longer than I planned. This was supposed to be posted Saturday, but I didn't start writing it until Friday night. My bad. Three days and thirteen (barely) pages later, here you have it!

Enjoy and try not to judge me for grammar issues, I splice commas like nobody's business, and I have no beta reader.

Review, please : )


	3. III

Disclaimer: If I owned either Harry Potter or the Vampire Diaries, I would not be hungry right now. Just sayin'.

**III**

"_Should I give up?_

_Or should I just keep chasing pavements, even if it leads nowhere?_

_Or would be a waste?_

_Even if I knew my place, should I leave it there?"_

_-Chasing Pavements, ADELE_

ooo

At exactly midnight, the day the Comet was due to pass over Mystic Falls, Harry shot awake. He lay in his bed, covered in sweat and trembling violently. His unruly hair was matted to his head with sweat, and every muscle in his swimmer's frame was tightly wound.

Harry stifled a moan and arched up from the bed as power -sweet, unbelievable, _delicious_ power- rolled through his body. He felt as though his bones were vibrating through his skin, and his blood was liquid fire running through his veins. It was not a painful feeling, he registered. Far from it, in fact.

His eyes were glowing in the darkness of the room, and he was totally unaware of both the figure watching him from a tree outside his window and the one watching from the hallway outside his door.

He wound up laying prone in his bed, breathing heavily, for a good hour while his body tried to numb itself to the extra energy pumping through him. He fell into a deep sleep around one in the morning, and wound up missing the first half of his school day.

ooo

During their lunch break on the same day, Elena was walking on the front lawn of the school with Ron. He was still rather withdrawn, full of worry, but he seemed to be coping well. The days following the Back to School Catastro-party -as Harry had labelled it- had passed uneventfully, even with one more animal attack victim having been found the next day.

Elena was rather thankful for that fact. A modern day elf, with a face that was all delicate angles and gentle slopes, she was too pretty for worry lines. At least, that's what Harry kept telling her.

The two didn't favor overly much. They had the same lithe build and delicate features, but Harry's hair looked as if it was spun from the night sky, whereas Elena's hair was a curtain of dark chocolate. They also had completely different eye colors, Elena had always envied her twin's startlingly green eyes.

Elena's brown eyes were pretty in their own way, but there had always been a part of her mind that was vindicated by the fact that Harry's eyes were covered by frames, and that he was blind as a bat without them. She tried to mentally suffocate that voice whenever it tried speaking.

"Have you heard from your mother?" Elena asked the tall boy. Ron had tried to get in touch with his and Ginny's mother via her current boyfriend, but the two had broken up.

"No, but that's fine. The doctors said they're releasing Ginny this afternoon. We're going together to the Comet shindig in the square," Ron answered. His face was an open book, and Elena could read his hopes for bonding with Ginny written all over it.

"That's great," Elena smiled at her old friend. "Has she said anything about what it might have been that attacked her? I know the authorities are still looking into it, what with the second attack."

Ron frowned. "Yeah, but it's really freaky. She told the Police that she couldn't remember what had attacked her, though."

"Why would she do that?" Elena was puzzled. "What exactly does she think attacked her?"

"A vampire."

ooo

Unknown to Ron and Elena, Stefan had been listening in on their conversation as he sat at a picnic table nearby. As the bell that ended lunch sounded, Stefan feigned illness to the school nurse via some subtle compulsion and missed the rest of the day.

He made for the hospital immediately, hoping to alter Ginny's memories before she even breathed the word 'vampire' to anyone else. He was well aware that the average person wouldn't give a second thought to the girl's opinion given her partying nature, but he was also aware that the Founders of the town had banded together to kill the vampires that would up being imprisoned under Fell's Church in 1864.

He didn't doubt for a second that they would have passed that knowledge down to their descendants.

The hospital lobby was sterile and drab, though Stefan supposed creativity and aesthetics weren't really the focus of such a building. "Hi, I'm here to see my friend, Ginny Weasley. She was attacked by an animal last week."

The nurse was a porn star of the nineties come to life. Big blonde hair, bigger breasts, and lipstick a shade of red that only occurs on Coca-Cola labels and drag queens. "Okay, sweetheart," She licked those too red lips in an altogether disturbing manner. "She is on the third floor, room 304. If you take the staircase at the end of this hallway, it's the second room on the left. Is there _anything _else I can do for you?"

The nurse leaned forward behind the counter, her shirt riding low into her ample cleavage. Stefan had to fight the urge to curl his lip in disgust.

"No," The statuesque male made eye contact with her, "That will be all." He held the contact for another second and left her in a daze.

By the time she snapped out of it, Stefan was on the third floor, and she had the strangest feeling that she'd forgotten something.

He paused at the door to room 304, listening and smelling to see if anyone was in the room with Ginny. Once he discerned that she was alone, he gently opened the door and slipped in. The red haired girl was fast asleep in the bed, eyelids fluttering as she dreamed.

Stefan closed the distance between the two of them, and woke her up by placing his hand on her arm. Immediately as her eyes opened, the green eyed vampire pushed into her mind. He filtered her memories of the attack, changing it so the girl recalled being attacked, but not what attacked her.

Satisfied by his handiwork, he eased himself from her mind and gently compelled her back to sleep.

ooo

Harry had finally scrounged up out of bed at half past ten, and had made it to school for his classes after lunch. It had only taken one look from Remus to deduce that he wasn't feeling well.

Harry wondered if it was the sweat, gray skin, or trembling muscles that had given him away. Luckily, a long shower had cured him of the zombie appearance and had gone far towards making him feel better. He couldn't escape the feeling that he had a little too much energy for his body, though.

Classes had gone on as usual, though Stefan wasn't around. Harry had gotten oddly used to the stoic boy being around him. After the party, the quiet one had taken to hanging around Harry and Elena more often. Harry thought Stefan had a thing for his twin sister, but he was keeping that between the two of them. He had his own love life to deal with, a love life that was currently being vivisected by the two girls he was sitting at the Mystic Grill with.

Hermione was eyeing Harry in way that would make Lucifer himself nervous, the boy was sure. "So, you mean to tell us that you had Damon Salvatore, a man so sexy I heard he isn't allowed back to three countries and the no longer Virgin -because he was there- Islands, in your room at nighttime and you didn't do _anything_ with him?"

"Yes," Harry replied calmly. "You should try to calm down a little. The angrier you get, the bigger your hair gets." The girl was practically on top of the table at this point.

"I just don't understand you, Harry," Hermione sighed dramatically and slid back into her seat. "I would do unspeakable things to that man."

Bonnie had remained moderately silent, letting Hermione do most of the grilling. "So you like, really just talked?"

"Yes," He stated firmly. "We talked until about one in the morning, and then he left and went back to the Boarding House, I'm assuming. Really, though, I talked for most of the time. I was just telling him how life has been this year for Elena and I. He asked about my friends and stuff. It's not that big of a deal, it was just two friends getting to know one another."

"Except for the whole part where you want in his pants," Bonnie grinned at Harry.

"Except for that part," Harry nodded his head.

"I don't believe you," Hermione made her mind. "Otherwise, why would Damon have anything to do with a high schooler? Unless he's out banging some college girls to pick up the slack. Oh, Harry, I'm so sorry."

"Hermione!" Harry snapped at the brunette. "I have not had sex with Damon Salvatore, and if he happens to be fucking girls at Duke in his spare time, then so be it. I have no claim over him, we aren't dating and frankly, you're pissing me off."

"So, who's excited about the Comet Festival?" Bonnie smiled cheerfully, trying to diffuse the mood. "Grams says it's a harbinger of evil. She said the last time it passed over Mystic Falls there were lots of death. So much carnage that it became a bed for paranormal activity."

"Yeah," Hermione snorted, "And then you poured her another shot and she told you about the aliens."

Harry stood abruptly and swung his bag over his shoulder. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to start putting up flyers for the Festival in the Square tonight, like I promised Sirius."

"Wait," Bonnie stood as Harry turned to walk out, "I'll help you. You'll be okay, right Hermione?"

"Yeah. Ron's on his way, he just picked Ginny up from the hospital." Hermione answered with a slight huff.

"Alright. Bye, girl!" Bonnie chirped and walked after Harry, who was standing outside the Grill waiting.

Harry had his arms crossed over his chest and was tapping his foot in agitation. The scowl on his face looked completely out of place with his light facial features. As Bonnie exited the Grill, he turned towards the lawn in the middle of the Square.

Bonnie followed him, smiling softly at the thunderous expression on the boy's face. "You know," She began, "Hermione's just jealous of you."

"Jealous?" The scowl deepened, if at all possible. "Whatever does she have to be jealous about? As I said, it's not like I'm in a relationship with Damon. I haven't even talked to him since the night of the party. He hasn't called, texted, emailed, or Facebooked me. Not that I care."

"Hermione is jealous because you've managed to catch his interest on your own. She's also upset that Stefan turned her down and is so chummy with Elena, and she's upset that Ron went for Elena and not her." Bonnie answered, divulging a couple of Hermione's secrets. She figured it was forgivable, since Harry was her best friend and it would make him feel better. "And about him not calling or anything, did you give him your phone number? Email address? Did you add him as a friend on Facebook, does he even have one?"

"She needs to get over herself. It's not like I met him on my back, told him to have his way with me, and to expressly avoid Hermione Granger." Harry pursed his lips in thought as he pulled a stapler from his bag to start putting up flyers. "Well, come to think of it, I may have met him on my back...I didn't ask him to do me, though. In so many words."

"Tramp," The petite girl quipped, putting a flyer on a light post. "You didn't answer my second series of questions. Did you give him any way of contacting you?"

"I suppose not," Harry frowned and paused in stapling. "How did I miss that? That's like Remedial Dating."

"Get your head in the game, rookie. It seems like you're giving up. You could've just gone to the Boarding House to see him and given him your number. You could've passed it through Stefan."

"I don't think they like one another too much," Harry answered. "It would just be a lot of drama that I don't need right now."

"Excuses," Bonnie replied unforgivingly. "I look at it this way, this is the first time ever that your happiness has been in your own hands. It's always been easy until now, you had a big safety net at home and you were always the invisible twin socially. Now, everything's changed and you're not only the one out on the limb, but you don't have your parents or Elena to save you. You know, since she's got her own life."

The girl held eye contact with Harry before continuing, "You can either hide behind all those nifty little buzz words like 'drama' and 'wrong time,' or you can act and have a shot at being really happy. You like him."

"When did you become so good, Bonnie Bennett?" Harry asked, floored at his friend.

"I had a vision of you driving two Asian girls in a minivan with Damon in the passenger seat," Bonnie smiled.

"You are such a twat."

"At least I'm not a coward."

ooo

The Square in Mystic Falls was a block of greenery in the dead center of the city. Main Street formed a box around it, and the whole town was based on a grid off of the Square. It was the go to spot for various celebrations which, as a small town, there were many of in Mystic Falls.

The Comet Festival was championed by Mayor Lockwood's wife, Carol, to celebrate and witness the comet's fly over. There were white Christmas lights strung about the Square, on benches and in the flora, and it was also on the buildings bordering the square. Most of the families of the town came out for these events, and the Comet Festival was no exception, with a veritable sea of blankets spread throughout the single-block park.

Harry had arrived with Elena, Jeremy, Bonnie, and his foster fathers about half past nine, with the Comet's passing expected to be at just after eleven. Remus, ever the prepared planner, believed that an hour and a half would prove the perfect amount of time for Sirius and he to schmooze while the four teens were with their friends.

The four had extricated themselves from the adults and managed to find Ron and Hermione sitting on a blanket not far away. The twins and Bonnie stayed with Hermione and Ron, while Jeremy went off in search of Ginny.

Elena and Bonnie fell into an easy conversation with the other two, all four lounging on the large plaid blanket, surely one of Ron's. Harry found himself spacing out, wondering about his 'relationship' with the elder Salvatore brother.

They'd shared a flirtation, and Damon knew a lot about Harry because of the night he'd spent most of at Harry's house. Really, though, Harry knew nothing of Damon other than the fact that he was dead sexy and tended to be around anytime Harry fell on his ass. And yet, despite that, Harry found himself totally enamored with and drawn to the older male.

It was all rather fucked up, if Harry was going to be completely honest with himself.

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he missed the younger Salvatore walking up and placing his hand on Harry's shoulder. The smaller boy jumped nearly a foot off of the ground before whipping around. He flushed pink upon seeing his 'attacker' and scratched his hair ruefully.

"I didn't mean to scare you," Stefan apologized, staring earnestly at Harry.

"No, it's fine. I wasn't quite here, that's all." Harry gave a lopsided smile to the handsome young man. Damon may have sent him all aflutter, Harry mused, but Stefan was certainly not a bad catch himself. Elena had noticed that fact almost immediately, something that made Harry a little uncomfortable. Twins couldn't date siblings, could they? Like...if your twin is your brother in law's wife, is she your sister in law too? It made the green-eyed boy a little woozy trying to figure it out.

"Can I talk to you for a second? Away from everyone else?" Stefan asked, somewhat meekly.

"Of course," Harry smiled obligingly, though his heart rate doubled. He looked back at his friends and noticed that they were inured with one another. "I doubt the others will even notice that I'm gone."

The two boys walked off together, dodging couples and families outstretched on the lawn. They walked towards the Grill, Stefan having offered to buy Harry a coffee while they were making idle talk. Harry picked a seat in a secluded corner of the restaurant and studied the other while Stefan ordered their drinks.

Stefan was just as outrageously handsome as his brother, though in a wholly different manner. Damon's stance and personality were open and all but had the phrase 'bad boy' tattooed on his face. Stefan was nearly the polar opposite. He was highly introverted, often bordering on broody, and gave out this aura that practically screamed protection.

Harry was fairly sure the boy had a hobby like saving cute little woodland creatures or starving orphans.

Physically speaking, he was devastatingly attractive. He had a wrestler's body, broad shoulders and thicker muscles than his longer, leaner brother. His forest green eyes complimented his brown hair nicely, and he had very strong classically masculine features.

He had also made it back to the table and was looking at Harry expectantly.

"I'm sorry, what?" Harry flushed again, wholly embarrassed this time.

"I asked if you wanted anything else," Stefan smiled at Harry, nearly knocking the boy out of his chair at the unexpected expression. Harry was newly sure that Stefan smiled so sparingly because if he did it often, people might just combust at the sight of it.

"No," Harry answered, somewhat breathless. "I'm fine, thank you."

"I suppose you'd like to know why I asked to talk to you away from the others, right?" At Harry's affirmative nod, Stefan continued. "It really only concerns you, honestly. Well, you and my brother at any rate. Harry, you know Damon is interested in you, don't you?"

"I had gathered as much," Harry replied, somewhat confused by the purpose of the discussion.

"Harry, you have to promise me something," Stefan's tone and face became stone serious.

"What?" The raven haired boy asked hesitantly.

"Promise me that you won't become involved with Damon," Stefan plowed right through the other boy's disgruntled sound. "He's not good for you, Harry. You'll only get hurt by him in the long run."

"Stefan," Harry began, letting out an uncomfortable laugh. "I appreciate your concern, but allow me to be frank with you for a second. I am so completely old enough to make decisions like that for myself that it's not even funny. Unless you can give me a valid reason to brush him off, Stefan, I'm just going to keep on with things how they have been. Damon hasn't even approached me in a serious manner, just some mild flirtation."

Any reply Stefan would have made was cut off by the appearance of said brother at the door to the Grill. Damon walked in briskly, shrugging off his black leather jacket, and made a beeline for his brother and the twin.

"Hiya, Stefanie, Harry," Damon greeted cheerfully, causing his brother to glare balefully. "How are you two on this momentous evening?"

"I'm fine," Harry replied. Stefan looked nauseous.

"If you'll excuse me, I'm going to see to the others," Stefan intoned, standing gracefully and exiting the building with his drink in hand. Damon slid into the now vacant seat across from Harry.

"If there was a Ms. Teenage-Angst pageant, Stefan would be untouchable," Damon grinned, revealing two rows of absolutely flawless teeth.

"I don't know," Harry giggled, taking a sip of his coffee. "My brother Jeremy could give Stefan quite a run for his money."

Damon smiled indulgently. "Ah, yes. One of the star crossed lovers?"

Harry snorted into his cup. "If by that you mean 'the boy wasting away over a girl who'll never be interested in him,' then yes."

"What about you? You wasting away over anyone at the moment?" Damon was eyeing Harry wolfishly.

Harry raised an eyebrow over his steaming mug. "No. Though, my interest may have been caught by someone."

"May have?"

"Yes," Harry lowered his coffee cup, revealing a self-sure grin. "I'm not totally sure though, he seems to think awfully highly of himself."

"I'm sure he has the goods to back up that ego."

"I'm not convinced. In any case, I don't know if he's all that interested in me."

"He would be a fool not to be interested in such a beautiful little raven," Damon smiled disarmingly at Harry, ending the verbal tennis match. "I'm sorry, Harry. I do have something I need to discuss with my brother. I'll find you out on the Square in like ten, okay?"

"That's fine," Harry and Damon both stood and made for the door, the older of the two grabbing his jacket as he went. The petite twin stood as Damon held the door open for him. "I'll see you in a bit, then?"

"Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night will stay me from swiftly returning to your side," The taller male's voice was that of an over-the-top Elizabethan actor. "Was that appropriately romantic?"

Harry laughed softly. "I've always wanted to be wooed by the United States Postal Service's motto."

"God, I'm good," Damon's grin softened. He reached out and brushed a wild strand of hair off of Harry's forehead. "I'll see you soon."

Harry watched Damon walk off in the direction of the Apothecary for a few seconds before turning and walking in the direction of his sister and their friends.

ooo

Stefan allowed himself about five minutes of brooding time after his infernal brother had interrupted his attempt at warning Harry. He could also slap himself at how that had gone. Stefan had just wanted to warn the boy, but Harry had taken it as Stefan meddling.

"Hey! Stefan!"

He turned at the exclamation to see Ron Weasley jogging up with his too-long legs.

"Hello, Ron. How can I help you?" Stefan gave a nod of his head to the other boy.

"I just wanted to talk for a second," The ginger replied, slowing down as he reached Stefan. "I noticed you've been hanging out with the twins a lot recently. You know, I've known the two of them for a long time. I know Elena and I aren't together anymore, but I look out for the two of them. I'll always look out for the two of them."

Stefan stared into Ron's eyes for a second, mildly amused at the blush that spread across his face like wildfire. "You're a good guy, you know that?"

Ron waved him off, the blush intensifying. "Eh. I'm alright."

Stefan chuckled. "You have nothing to worry about. My intentions towards your friends are completely pure."

"Yeah, I figured. Just wanted to make sure."

Their newfound camaraderie was interrupted when Stefan heard a scream coming from the old Apothecary. He frowned at the intrusion, fully knowing who was probably causing it.

"Excuse me," Stefan muttered, sidestepping Ron and walking briskly towards the building. He narrowly maintained a human pace, his vampiric instincts were urging him to run at top speed.

He arrived in front of the shop and scanned it quickly, noticing a fire escape on the side of the building that would lead to the roof. Walking into the shadows flanking the structure, Stefan took a deep, if unnecessary, breath and leapt onto the roof in a single bound.

He was immediately met by a mocking look of astonishment from his older brother. "Not bad. You've been eating bunnies haven't you? I would give it a ten, but you know. You're not me or anything."

"Shove it, Damon. What the hell are you trying to do?" Stefan was glaring at Damon, who had an arm wrapped around Ginny Weasley. She was leaning heavily against his side, and appeared very unwell. Her eyes were glazed, likely from Damon invading her mind repeatedly, and her red hair was matted with sweat.

"I was just having a chat with my friend Ginny," Damon was nonchalant, ever the sociopath. He yanked Ginny around to face him and bore into her eyes. "Stefan Salvatore did this to you."

"Stefan Salvatore did this to me," The girl murmured, brown eyes completely vacant now.

"He's a vampire. A vicious, murderous monster who attacked you in cold blood," The tall male continued compelling Ginny.

"Stop this! What are you trying to accomplish!" Stefan ran at the two of them, but before he could move to attack, Damon had him around the throat and Ginny was on the ground.

"Your lifestyle has made you weak," Damon growled, lifting Stefan off of the ground. "A couple of vampire parlor tricks? That's nothing compared to what you could have, to what you now need. You could change that. Human blood would make you what nature wants you to be."

"No," Stefan ground out. "I won't become a monster like you."

"You can either feed from her and compel her to forget, or you can let her run free, screaming 'Vampire!' through the streets of Mystic Falls."

"Why are you doing this? What do you want?" Stefan's voice was weak from Damon's continued chokehold.

"I want you to remember who you are. I want you to remember _what_ you are. You mope around, feeding off of disgusting little creatures and pretending to be human. You will _never _be a human!" Damon roared, throwing Stefan against the door leading into the Apothecary from the roof.

Damon continued, blue eyes flashing, "I also want you to remember which of us is stronger, and not to mess with me. Leave Harry alone. He is mine!" He turned back to Ginny and removed the mind-whammy he'd put on her, reverting her memories to the ones that Stefan had fashioned.

He smiled winningly at the girl, who merely stared emptily back at him. "Well, now that that nasty business is finished with, I have a date." He meandered to the side of the building, stepping over Stefan, who was laid out on the ground by the door, and hopped off.

Stefan groaned, running a hand over his face. He pulled himself off the ground and moved over to Ginny. "C'mon, Gin. Let's get you back to your brother."

ooo

Damon dodged people in the grass, trying to make his way towards Harry without snapping anyone's neck or feeding off of them.

It's all for the plan, he kept reminding himself.

He finally spotted the boy, seated on an electric blue plaid blanket, when he was waylaid by the hedge-witch that Harry was so close to.

"Damon," The little witch was completely un-suspicious, her mind an open door. "Harry never gave you his number, did he?"

His blue eyes darkened in thought at her question. "No, now that I think about it. He never did."

The cheerleader smiled smugly and held out her hand, a piece of paper rolled in her palm. "Here. Sometimes I think he was raised by wolves some days."

Damon gave a laugh and moved to take the paper. As their hands touched, Bonnie let out a small gasp as her eyes went unfocused. Damon withdrew his hand quickly, watching the girl carefully as she recovered.

"Umm," She stuttered. "I'm just gonna go over to Elena and Hermione. I'll see you later, yeah?" The girl didn't even wait for a reply before she shot over to the others. Damon narrowed his eyes in her direction, wondering how much of a complication she would prove to be.

He shook his head, pushing the thought to the back-burner for now, and closed the distance to where Harry was seated.

ooo

Harry checked the time on his cell phone and sighed. It was one 'til eleven. He placed the phone down beside his legs and shifted slightly to get comfortable. He was well aware that he was fidgeting, but as the time the comet was supposed to pass came nearer, Harry found that the excess energy in him was growing exponentially.

"Hey, there," Harry turned as Damon dropped down next to him. "Sorry, that took a bit longer than I expected."

"It's fine," Harry placated. "I've just been watching the stars a little. I have my iPod, too."

"You know, that comet. It's been traveling through space for thousands of years. All alone." Damon laid on his back, folding his arms behind his head. His blue eyes turned up to the stars, and Harry was taken aback at how beautiful Damon was.

"You can relate? Bonnie says it's a harbinger of evil." Harry pulled his knees up to his chest, stuck between staring at the man laying next to him and scratching his skin off as he felt like he had stuck his finger in a light socket.

"I think it's just a ball of snow and ice, trapped on a path it can't escape and once every one hundred and forty five years, it gets to come home." Damon sat up and placed a hand on Harry's forehead. "Are you feeling alright? You're not looking really well."

Harry's answer came out as a choked sob, the field around them erupted into delighted gasps as the comet flew overhead. Harry's eyes glowed acid green in the night, and he clutched Damon's arm reflexively.

"Harry?" Damon grasped Harry to support the small boy, feeling heat and energy rolling from the small form.

The boy didn't respond as his eyes rolled back into his head and fluttered shut. Damon allowed himself a victory smirk as Harry passed out in his arms. He lifted the light male into his arms before going in search of Bonnie.

Yes, Damon thought, every thing was going exactly to plan.

ooo

A/n: Sorry about the delay, real life caught up with me for a bit. Also, I kinda shot myself in the foot in my storyline without meaning to, so I had to go back to the drawing board. No worries, though, as I have re-planned the story and like it _much _more. Three things to enrich your holiday season-

1) Go see Black Swan. (The movie with Natalie Portman)

2) Garrett Hedlund as Sam Flynn in Tron Legacy. OH MY GOD, HOT.

3) Spicy Tuna Rolls. Yes.

Happy Holidays, everyone! Please review!


	4. IV

Disclaimer: Still don't own either The Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter.

**IV**

"_I can make you move against your will, yeah._

_Don't it make you sad to lose control?_

_Every single thought of yours, distracted._

_Broken voices, I stunt your growth."_

_-Broken Voices, Ari Hest_

ooo

He was warm and comfortable. Really, anything on top of those two facts was superfluous. He was lying on a terribly soft surface and wrapped in a cocoon of warmth.

Had he felt like wakening the cognitive portions of his brain, he would've realized that he was in a bed.

Harry lay there, completely content to keep his mind firmly in the 'off' position, and bask in the comfort of his mental wonderland. That is, until a unbelievably bright light seared through his eyelids. He immediately retreated under the covers of the bed, hoping to block the offensive light.

Bonnie was a little amused by the high-pitched whine that Harry emitted, unaware that such a sound came from anything other than a cat in heat. She turned from the newly opened curtains towards the bed her best friend was sequestered in.

"Wake up, Sleeping Beauty," Bonnie cried, giving a cheshire-cat grin to the lump in the bed. "Grams is downstairs, and she wants to talk to you."

A string of unintelligible words came from the gray down comforter.

"I'll take that as 'Alright, Bonnie, I'll be downstairs in a minute.' You don't want Grams to come up here, you know that." With that thinly veiled threat, Bonnie backed out of the room and went to the kitchen, where her Grandmother was waiting.

ooo

Harry had wasted another good ten minutes suffocating himself in the too-comfortable bed located in Bonnie's guestroom before he finally emerged and decided to venture downstairs. Bonnie and her Grandmother lived in a nice, two story home a few streets over from Remus and Sirius' house.

Honestly, all of the houses in Mystic Falls were nice. The suburb was notoriously well-to-do, with the Weasley's being the least wealthy in the area, but still having a respectable three bedroom home.

The bannisters of the staircase were a burnished dark cherry wood, and the walls were a deep maroon. There were few photographs on the walls. They were mostly covered in various pieces of artwork: landscape paintings, a few rough sketches, portraits of Bonnie at differing ages. Grams was an artist when she wasn't teaching classes on the occult and polytheistic religions at the local college, and you could tell her house was a work of love for the woman.

Harry's pondering of the décor occupied his thoughts so heavily that his arrival in the kitchen was announced by a smothered curse as he walked, head first, into a clock mounted on the wall.

"You're more than just a pretty face, aren't you dear?" Grams was seated at the kitchen table, Bonnie fiddling with the coffee maker.

Sheila Bennett, Grams, was a formidable woman. As petite as her granddaughter, she had brown shoulder length curls, milk chocolate skin, wickedly sharp cheekbones, and a mouth on the precipice of bursting into either a warm smile or a deeply cutting frown. She was on Harry's list of People Likely to Feed You to a Crocodile.

She was awesome.

"Some days I like to recite poetry and debate philosophy." Harry smiled tiredly through his retort.

"Sit down, child. Bonnie's either making coffee or trying to create a renewable fuel source, I can't figure out which, it's taking her so long." Harry took the cue and sat down across the table from Grams, leaving a seat open on either side of the four-seater table.

"There's no need to be snippy, Grams," Bonnie frowned over a spoonful of coffee grounds.

"Mmm," Grams pursed her lips at Bonnie. She was very youthful, hardly having aged in all of the years Harry had been coming to her house. Bonnie's parents had divorced while Bonnie and Harry were children, and Bonnie's mother had moved in with Grams. When her mother left, Bonnie stayed.

"Now then, Monkey," Harry smiled softly at the childhood nickname. "We need to talk about what's been going on with you."

His smile vanished at Grams' statement. What was she talking about? Damon?

"I don't suppose you'd like to come out and admit to anything, would you?"

"No," Harry replied slowly. "I can't think of anything I'd need to talk about."

"Really, nothing strange has happened to you recently? No random accidents occurring around you? Nothing that you think would tie-in to your fainting spell last night?" Grams was raising a fiercely arched eyebrow at Harry as Bonnie placed a steaming mug of coffee in front of her before taking a seat next to the two of them.

"Well, now that you mention it," Harry trailed off. "Some...odd things have been happening recently, I suppose."

Grams waited for him to continue, adjusting her cream-colored scarf and taking a sip of her coffee. Bonnie merely looked at him nervously.

"I guess I should just start with yesterday. I felt weird, all day. It was like someone placed the wrong kind of battery in me." Harry chuckled softly at his analogy. "One that was too strong. I felt like I was on the edge of exploding all day long, and then when the comet flew over, it got so strong I just couldn't handle the energy anymore. I guess that's when I passed out."

"See, that wasn't so hard to admit, now was it?" Grams smiled graciously at her surrogate grandchild.

Harry gave a lopsided smile in response before turning his attention to Bonnie, who was biting her lip like it was going out of style. He frowned a little, "Bonnie, are you okay?"

Her pretty face scrunched itself up unattractively and she emitted a quiet, shrill squeak in response before bursting into a shout. "Grams and I think you're a witch like us!" She slapped her hand over her mouth as Grams rolled her eyes and muttered something about needing rum in her coffee.

Harry blinked a few times at his now-panting best friend before exploding into peals of laughter. He was laughing so hard, in fact, that his face had taken on a rather unattractive shade of violet.

"Dammit, Bonnie. You broke him," Grams' quip was lazy. She leaned forward in her chair and her eyes glinted harshly in the light. "Harry," she said, and the single word was a command for him to gather himself.

"Oh," The boy was somewhat breathless. "Yes, Grams? I'm sorry. It's just that it's such a ludicrous thing to say. I can't be a witch."

"And why not?" Grams asked, sitting back and sipping her drink.

"I'm not a female, and there's no history of witchcraft in my family." Harry nodded, convincing himself as much as Bonnie and Grams.

"There are just as many male magic users as female ones. Also, you don't know enough about your family history to say that. It's not like it would be written on your grandparent's tombstones, no one was alive when you began manifesting, so no one would have mentioned it to you as a child." Grams reasoned, placing her coffee cup on the checkered tablecloth.

"Harry, you passed out last night because our magic is tied into the comet's passage. Grams and I both felt energized by the comet, but we think your reaction is because you're more powerfully magically than either of us. Our bloodline is very diluted, with no pure witch having been in it for several generations. We think that your powers come from a stronger, more recent source." Harry's best friend went back to biting her lip.

"Aside from falling out yesterday, I don't understand why the two of you are saying all of this. I haven't done any magic," Harry's voice became louder as he grew more upset.

"Don't you raise your voice at me, Monkey," Grams voice took on a decidedly sharp edge. "I will knock you into next Thursday, boy."

"I'm sorry, Grams." Harry flushed, looking at his lap and wringing his hands.

Bonnie returned to the topic at hand, "You have shown your powers though, Harry. You just weren't aware of it. Do you remember Mr. Binns' class on the first day of school? How did you feel when Stefan was staring you down?"

"Uncomfortable, to say the least. I zoned out; you sent me that text to snap me back into reality before Binns had me for lunch."

"Yes! I needed to distract you, because as Stefan made you more anxious, your bag started to float. As soon as you came back to reality, it fell back onto the ground. Also, do you remember when I took you home from the party at the falls? You nearly passed out and I had to cart you home because you slowed down the bloodflow from Ginny's neck."

"That's not true," Harry scoffed, though his eyes were wide. "I didn't do anything to Ginny's neck, I just sorta went blank."

"Are you noticing a pattern, Monkey? Say these are coincidences, though, have any other things happened while you weren't paying attention, or while you were overly emotional?" Grams asked.

Harry was silent for a few seconds. "I blew up a sink," he finally whispered.

"Come again?" Grams let out a short laugh.

"I got mad at Jeremy and a sink in one of the boys bathrooms at school blew up. It flooded the bathroom and they had to move one of the freshman Chemistry classes on the hallway."

"That was your fault?" Bonnie was astounded.

"That was also when I met Stefan. He was in the bathroom when the sink went Chernobyl." Harry replied distantly, frowning. "So, let's say for a second I am a witch...wizard...warlock? Anyways, if I am, what happens now?"

"First things first, Bonnie pours me a shot of Patron. Then, we teach you how to control your abilities, so the Vietnam Conflict doesn't occur every time your twerp of a brother pisses you off. Lord knows that boy could start an argument in an empty house."

With that, Grams stood up and began towards the living room, muttering all the while.

ooo

"The first step to controlling your magic is to find it." Grams had cleared the living room floor, moving all of the furniture up against the walls. There was incense burning, and the room was lit by candlelight solely.

"And the frankincense and myrrh are supposed to help how?" Harry asked, eyeing the incense distastefully.

"Oh, they just set the mood. It feels more official this way." Grams shrugged, pulling her scarf off and sitting in the middle of the flood, gesturing for Harry to sit across from her.

"Can't I just MapQuest my magic or something?"

"I will slap the taste out of your mouth, boy."

"Sorry, Grams." Harry's gaze fell to his feet as he sat back on his knees across from Grams. Bonnie had escaped to her bedroom at the first opening, though Grams had sent a threat up after Bonnie in case the girl didn't clean her room.

"Children. They hit puberty, start blowing things up, and all of sudden think they know everything. With their Facebook, and their iPhones, and their Blueberries."

"BlackBerry, Grams."

"I know that, Monkey. I am a college professor, I was trying to get you to relax." Grams laughed a little. "Now, on to the work. Close your eyes."

Harry did as she asked, and attempted to calm his nerves. He took in a deep breath and concentrated on slowing his racing heart.

"Good. Now, I want you to picture a fire. This fire is the source of your magical energies. It's the very core of your powers and your being."

The green eyed boy was surprised by the ease in which he visualized the fire.

"I want you to hold your hand out, and imagine the fire in your hand. Feel the heat from the fire on the palm of your hand," Grams instructed.

Harry had a moment of tranquility as his hand warmed gently under the arcane fire. He then realized exactly what was happening, and his eyes shot open in shock. Sitting mildly in the palm of his hand was a bloom of fire, crackling softly.

The boy's breathing stopped at the sight of the fire, and the realization that he was, in fact, a witch like Bonnie and Grams. Grams had sensed the change in the air of the room, and opened her eyes to see Harry entranced by the fire in his palm.

On the green-eyed boy's part, he had become fully aware of his powers in that instant. His eyes glossed over and began to glow the eerie green they did whenever his magic manifested. The small fire in his hand was nowhere near the proper size for the deep well of his eldritch abilities. The fire began to grow unchecked.

"Harry!" Grams tried to snap the boy back into himself. The teen's hair began to blow about as if in a breeze, and the fire, still growing in size, began to flicker as if wind was blowing through it as well. "Ah, hell," Grams muttered, before vocalizing a spell that doused Harry in cold water, snapping him from his reverie.

Harry moaned weakly, sliding from his knees onto his rear. "Why am I wet?"

"Look up," Grams commanded, glaring at her ceiling.

As Harry did, he saw a large black scorch mark directly above him on the otherwise cream colored ceiling. "Oh, my..." He said breathlessly.

Sheila Bennett turned her glare down to her surrogate grandchild. "I suppose this means I'm going to have to get a little bit...creative with you."

ooo

A good four hours later, at two in the afternoon, an exhausted Harry and a triumphant Grams exited the living room, Harry in search of Bonnie, Grams in search of booze. It had taken them the entire time to find a means for Harry to visualize his power well without it overwhelming him. Grams had handed Harry a large and heavy tome of some sort and told him to begin studying it. She would be teaching him hands-on lessons twice a week, but he would have to study spells and such on his free time as well.

He found Bonnie in the living room, laid out on a couch engrossed in a program on the television.

"Hey!" Harry shouted, vaulting over the back of the couch and landing on top of the girl.

"Oof! Get off me!" Bonnie laughed, pushing at Harry's face with her hands. He finished burrowing his head into her neck and cuddled up to her. "That traumatic?"

"Grams is half-shark. I'm fully convinced." Harry muttered into his friend's neck. Bonnie merely laughed.

"Hey, sit up," Bonnie finally intoned. "I've got something I need to tell you."

"Something else?" Harry sat up on the couch, untwining their legs. "I don't know if I can handle any other life-altering shocks today."

"No, it's not that serious. It's about Damon," Bonnie became quiet for a second, pulling her thoughts together. "Last night, I gave him your number."

"Bonnie!" Harry shrieked, interrupting her.

"Shut up," Bonnie snorted. "You forgot again last night, if I hadn't done it, it would never get done."

Harry nodded his head reluctantly. "I guess that's true."

"And completely beside the point. When I handed him the paper, our hands brushed for a second, and I felt...odd." Bonnie was wary of Harry's reaction.

"Odd how?"

"He felt like...like death."

He cocked his head to the side and watched her for a few seconds before nodding. "Alright."

"Alright?" She asked.

"Yep. I don't really know what to make of it, so it's whatever to me at this point. I mean, _he _isn't dead. As far as I know, anyway," Harry giggled. "I trust you, and I trust that you felt that bad juju from him. I just don't know what to do about it. I'll just stay aware, I guess."

"That's all I can ask," Bonnie finished. "Now, you're making me miss season three of Grey's Anatomy."

"Bonnie, it's a DVD. Just start it over."

ooo

Harry spent the rest of the weekend with Sheila and Bonnie, only coming home Sunday night, at Remus' request. Monday morning saw him in the bleachers of the Mystic Falls High gym marking up a copy of the _Poisonwood Bible_ while idly watching his twin sister fail terribly at cheerleading practice.

Harry had no illusions about her motivations for trying out for the cheerleading squad. Her sudden interest in the team was fueled by the fact that Stefan had been invited to join the football team after he caught a ball Tyler Lockwood was trying to nail him in the face with.

His morning continued in this manner until Hermione finally got fed up with Elena flailing about the basketball court, and called practice off early. Harry wasn't sure if this was a good idea, considering the exhibition game was that evening.

He wondered who he would sit with, given the fact that Ron, Tyler and Stefan were all on the football team -not that he would have sat by Tyler anyways-, and Bonnie, Hermione, and Elena were all cheerleaders now. Damon, Harry thought. He could always ask Damon to come to the game.

Damon may have had his number, but he still didn't have Damon's. Come to think of it, Harry honestly wasn't sure if Damon or Stefan had a cell phone. They always just kind of...appeared. He didn't believe sending the query through Stefan would work either, considering either brother seemed to foam at the mouth when the other was mentioned. No, Harry decided, I'll simply have to drop by the boarding house.

The rest of his day was terribly mundane. The fact that the highlight of his scholastic career was when Binns called him out, Harry had made it a point to be on his A game since that disastrous class in which Stefan had saved his ass, was a very sad fact indeed. Stefan and Binns had another debate-team-scholar-bowl-nerd off, with Stefan emerging victorious again. His defense when Bonnie questioned him was that he played a lot of crossword puzzles as a child.

After school, Harry went over to the Boarding House to see Damon, as he knew that Stefan would be at football practice, and Harry would have the car all to himself as Elena would be at cheerleading. Until she quit, anyway.

The drive from Harry's house to Damon's was short, but momentarily depressing, as he had to pass over the bridge his parents' accident had occurred on.

He pulled into the driveway of the inordinately large home and sat in the idling car for a few seconds, garnering the courage to get out and knock on the door. Harry let out a sigh and got out of the car. He adjusted the collar of his orange plaid button down as he approached the door. His knocks went unanswered for a few seconds, and he almost began walking off, when the door suddenly swung open.

A completely unfamiliar man peeked his head around the door. "Hello?"

"Hi," Harry answered, smiling hesitantly at the man. "I'm looking for Damon Salvatore, is he here?"

"No, he's not in right now. Would you like to wait in the living room for a bit? I think he should be back soon." The man said, stepping out of the doorframe and motioning Harry in.

"Thank you," Harry smiled graciously. "I'm Harry Potter, I'm a...friend of Damon's."

"I"m Zach," The man supplied his hand, which Harry shook. "I'm Damon and Stefan's uncle."

"Neither of them mentioned an Uncle," Harry said. He was now perusing the living room of the boarding house, looking at the photographs hanging on the walls.

"They don't like to brag."

Harry could hear the man's smile in his voice, and couldn't help but turn and grin at the man. "I like you." He announced.

"I'm very glad," Zach replied, moving to sit on the couch. "So, Harry Potter, what's your reason for seeking out Damon?"

"Well, he's kinda saved my life a couple of times now. I've also pretty much poured my life story out to him, and I was looking to find out a little more about the elusive Damon Salvatore. You wouldn't happen to be able to help me out, would you?" Harry's grin turned diabolical as he moved to sit next to Zach.

"What would you like to know?" Zach asked, eyeing Harry seriously.

"Why is there so much animosity between Stefan and Damon?" Harry cut straight to the question that had been bothering the most. Having a twin sister, Harry didn't quite understand how a pair of siblings could harbor that much malignancy between themselves. Harry didn't think Elena could do anything to ruin their relationship if she tried.

"Whew. Right to the million dollar question, huh?" Zach exhaled loudly. "There was once a girl. A beautiful young girl who lived here in Mystic Falls. She looked a lot like you and your sister, actually. Her name was Katherine. Katherine Pierce. She was Stefan's girlfriend."

"Why do I feel like she wasn't content with just one Salvatore brother?" Harry asked.

"Smart boy," Zach smiled. "She wasn't. She was playing around with Damon on the side for the entirety of her relationship with Stefan. Though I'm sure if you asked Damon, he would say that Katherine was dating him and playing around with Stefan. Regardless, she played both of them like a harmonica."

"What happened to end all of it?" Harry asked, running his thumb along his chin thoughtfully.

"She died," Zach said frankly. "There was a fire, and she died in it. Damon and Stefan were left behind, with nothing but malevolence and bad memories between the two of them."

"Whoa," Harry breathed. He had been expecting some minor drama leading to a grudge, not 'bitch ex-girlfriend sleeping with a brother and then dying in a housefire' drama.

"Yeah, whoa. Telling you that may have been a slight overstepping of boundaries, so if you could keep that between us, at least until one of them comes clean to you, that would be great." Zach grinned sheepishly.

Harry agreed, and the two made small talk for another twenty minutes or so, until Damon came in looking as delicious as always. He had the body of a fighter, long and whipcord lean. The tight black t-shirt all but telegraphed his negative body fat. His black hair was artfully mussed, and his blue eyes lightened somewhat upon seeing Harry.

"Harry! To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Hi, Damon," Harry cursed his complexion for the flush he could feel heating his cheeks. "I just wanted to see if you wanted to go to the scrimmage football game at the school tonight."

"A chance to see Stefan get smashed into the ground by a chunky teenager in need of deodorant? _And_ I get to sit next to a sexy guy? I'm there." Damon's lips turned up and revealed those perfectly white teeth.

Harry's cheeks were still flushed prettily as he stood up from the couch. "Good, I'll meet you at the front of the stadium at seven?"

"It's a date."

As Harry got in the car to go home and get ready, he found that his face was sore from the ridiculous grin he'd worn since Damon's last statement.

ooo

After football practice was over, the team had a window of about an hour to eat, chill, shower, have sex in a janitor's closet, or whatever else they needed to do to prepare for the scrimmage. Stefan found Elena at the front door of the gym, dressed in a pair of jeans and a green tank top.

"Why aren't you dressed out for the game?" He asked.

"I quit," Elena stated darkly. "I'm a quitter."

"Oh," Stefan's green eyes shined with sympathy and some amusement. "I suppose that's for the best. I saw you practicing. You looked miserable."

Elena gave a pathetic laugh. "Yeah, I was. I wanted so badly for things to be like they were."

"How so?"

"I wasn't always sad girl, you know? There was this whole other Elena you've yet to meet. She was very busy, into everything."

"Well, I look forward to meeting her." Stefan smiled down at Elena, causing her heart to skip a beat.

"I figured the best way for things to be the way they were was to do the things I did. Whoa, tongue twister. I guess it's just not that easy though."

"You'll have to cheer me on from the stands this evening, then." Stefan shook his head sadly.

"We're a pair, you start something, I quit something."

"It's a nice balance. It keeps us from being one of those annoying power couples."

Elena couldn't help but beam as she felt warmth rush through her.

"I hope you don't think this is too soon, or too weird, but I have something for you." Stefan threw a sheepish look her way before pulling a necklace out of his bag. The necklace was a thin gold chain, with an abstracted angel-esque trinket on it.

"I think it's beautiful," Elena was breathless. She pulled her hair back and turned, allowing Stefan to clasp the necklace around her throat. "It's wonderful."

"I'm glad you think so," Stefan's eyes held a special warmth as he gazed down at Elena.

ooo

Harry and Damon met at the gate to the football field at exactly seven, a half an hour before kick-off. Harry would vehemently deny having been almost thirty minutes early to anyone who asked, though.

The two made small talk on the way to the field, Harry discovering the Damon's favorite color was black -shock-, and Damon discovering that Harry was allergic to strawberries and was a cheap drunk. This continued until they reached the stands, where they saw a fight going on in the endzone between a football player and some kid.

"That guy's getting his ass handed to him," Harry murmured, wincing slightly as the kid took a right hook to the jaw. "Ow."

"Harry," Damon trailed off. "Isn't that your brother?"

"Jeremy? Why would Jeremy be fighting with any of the...oh, shit. Jeremy!" Harry shouted, and took off down the stands towards the endzone, Damon in tow. Damon slowed down as they reached the stairs to the field though, leaving Harry to approach the endzone by himself.

Harry arrived on the field in time to see Stefan pull Jeremy away from Tyler, his hand getting sliced open on an edge of Jeremy's belt buckle. Jeremy was clearly drunk, his curses were slurred, and his thorough ass-kicking could be blamed on his pathetic coordination.

"Jeremy!" Harry closed the distance between himself and his brother, and began checking him over for injuries. His brother's jaw was swelling already, he had the beginnings of a black eye, and his nose was bleeding in a slow dribble. "Come on, Jer. I'll call Remus to come get you."

"No," Jeremy slurred. "He'll kill me."

"Just shut up and let me do the talking, we'll pretend you have a concussion. I'll take you to the doctor tomorrow. Also, don't worry about Remus killing you. As soon as you're well again, _I'm_ going to kill you. What the hell were you thinking picking a fight with Tyler Lockwood? While he's wearing football pads? Stupid." Harry muttered, now-half carrying his much larger younger brother towards the gate.

Stefan came up behind them and grabbed Jeremy under his other arm, taking most of the weight from Harry, earning him an Earth-shattering smile. The two managed to get Jeremy up to the parking lot before sitting him on a bench. Ten minutes, and one intense phone call with Remus later, Jeremy was in the back seat of a car with Remus and Sirius driving, half way between killing him and crying.

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Stefan asked, watching the car drive off.

"Today? They'll baby him and he'll be fine. Tomorrow? His ass is dead." Harry snorted. "Let's get back down there. Don't you have like warm-ups or something?"

Stefan and Harry turned back around and made for the field. The whole school was built on a hill, with only the very front entrance visible from the road. The front lawn was massive, and the stadium was built directly behind the school, at the bottom of the incline.

Once they made it down the hill to the stadium gate, Harry had to flash his ticket again, and the two prepared to separate. Harry frowned as they reached the top of the stands. They were beginning to fill up, as kick-off was within fifteen minutes, but he couldn't spot Damon at all.

"Where'd your brother go?"

"Hmm?"

"Your brother? You know, about six feet tall, dark hair, talks with his eyebrows? Ring any bells?" Harry rolled his eyes internally.

"I'm sure he's just in the restroom or something. If you'll excuse me, I should probably join the team." Stefan was shuffling about.

"Oh, yeah." Harry laughed at himself. "Good luck!"

Stefan waved him off and starting jogging down the stairs. Harry allowed himself a moment to thank all of the deities he knew of as he watched Stefan's butt in the too-tight football pants.

"There is a God," Harry breathed. He snapped back from his creepy-staring reverie with a frown. Harry was sure that Stefan's hand had been cut open on Jeremy's belt, he had seen it happen and seen the blood on the belt. However, when Stefan waved him off before leaving, his hand had been perfectly unmarred. Shaking his head, and shaking it off, Harry went off in search of Damon.

After checking the men's room, the concession stand, and walking up and down the stands for a good ten minutes, Harry sat down with a couple of minutes 'til kick-off. Right before the game started, Harry's attention was diverted by someone dropping down next to him. It was his sister, dressed normally, and looking happier than Harry had seen her in some time.

"Hey there, cheer-loser. Where's your mini-skirt and push-up bra?" Harry teased, eyes alight.

"Ha. Ha. Jerk. I quit," Elena's doe brown eyes glared at her brother. "Although, I don't think I would have lasted much longer if I hadn't quit. I'm pretty sure Bonnie or Hermione would have killed me by now." She had a little self-deprecating laugh at the end of it.

"Nah, they would have just stuck you in the back. You know, behind Kelsi with three fingers and a missing tooth." Harry held a completely straight face.

"You are a horrible little troll," Elena hit him on the shoulder.

"Hey now, what's this domestic violence?"

"Damon!" Harry called out in surprise. Damon sat down next to him, definitely in Harry's personal space. Not that Harry cared at all, mind you. It was kind of nice to have the larger male enveloping him. It didn't hurt that he smelled _heavenly_, either, nice and woodsy.

"Sorry about taking so long, I had to take care of some business really quickly. I'm all yours for the rest of the game, though." Damon grinned down at Harry, causing his stomach to flop uncomfortably.

The three turned their attention to the game, as the kick-off had occurred, and they were a few minutes into the first quarter. The exhibition match was against a team from a neighboring county, and there wasn't much in the way of rivalry between the teams. The stadium was only sparsely populated, as most alumni and parents would start coming to the games at Friday's regular season game.

Harry quickly lost interest in the game itself, and due to his intense lesson with Grams two days previous, and his practicing in near all of his spare time, was decidedly tired. Before he realized it, his head was leaning on Damon's shoulder, and he was nodding off to sleep.

Damon's arm wrapped itself around Harry's waist, securing the younger male against his side. Elena's focus was solely on Stefan, currently on the field.

The game passed in this manner, with Harry asleep, Elena enraptured with Stefan, and Damon alternating between annoyance at the girl and a grudging acceptance that it felt...natural to have to boy nestled against him like this.

The match finally ended, with Mystic Falls emerging victorious, and Damon reluctantly awakened the emerald eyed teen against his side. Harry was a reasonably good sport about being woke up, only glaring at Damon for a few minutes.

"Hey, will you guys walk over to the locker rooms with me? I don't want to go by myself." Elena stood, already expecting a negative from Damon, who knew Stefan would be there.

"Of course," Harry answered, yawning. He stood up, dislodging Damon's' arm, and waited for his sister.

"Actually," Damon stood as well, replacing his arm around the other boy's waist. "I'll go with you guys. I need to congratulate my baby bro, don't I?"

Elena and Harry shot him a disbelieving stare before the three made for the locker rooms, located on the opposite end of the field. The closer they got, they noticed a lot of commotion coming from the small building. People were sprinting about, some on their phones, and most all of them looked panicked. Harry noticed Bonnie standing with Ron and Stefan slightly out of the crowd, and pointed them out.

"What's going on?" Elena asked as they zeroed in on the three, noticing Ron's particularly colorless pallor, and his glazed eyes.

"It's Mr. Binns," Bonnie explained, appearing on the verge of tears. "He's dead. Ron found his body."

"What?" Harry couldn't help but withdraw into Damon's side. "He's dead?"

"He was murdered," Ron answered, not looking away from the locker room.

The four teenagers were too busy staring at the small metal building to notice Stefan and Damon's locked eyes. Damon sneered at his brother over the other's heads, victory in his gaze.

ooo

A/n: This was the _hardest_ I have ever had try to write something, and I'm honestly very unhappy with it. I think opening a vein over my laptop would have been easier. Please forgive any typos, after two weeks of work I never want to read this chapter again, lol, and I still have no beta.

If you'd like to help me out and be my beta reader, send me a message please!

Thank you for reading, please review, and I hope your holidays were as lovely as mine. Good luck to everyone beginning a new semester this week.

: )


	5. V

**Disclaimer: **I still have no ownership of either the Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter franchises. Sad day.

**V**

"_Don't want your money._

_Just want your sex._

_Take a bite of my bad girl meat._

_Show me your teeth."_

_-Teeth, Lady Gaga_

ooo

Five people met in the library of Lockwood Manor, home to the mayor of Mystic Falls as well as his family. The room held a palpable anxiety. This was evinced in little things, from the Mayor tapping his foot on the floor, to his wife running her fingers through her long, dark hair and mussing it periodically.

The Mayor and his wife Carol were seated on a loveseat, Carol perusing through a harlequin novella. Both of them had the dark hair that their child, Tyler, carried. Carol's figure was immaculate for a woman of her age, especially having had a child. Richard Lockwood was also a man who carried his age well, realizing that a career in politics required him to take care of himself.

Sheriff Granger, Jane by name, was standing by a window. Nervous energy was obvious in her as she gazed over the driveway, letting the warmth of the sunlight bathe her face. The fourth occupant of the room, Sirius Black, was slumped over at a table, his elbows on the top and his head resting in his arms. He was resisting the urge to sigh enormously every few seconds, as the group awaited another person's arrival. The last member of the gathering was Zach Salvatore, uncomfortably browsing the myriad shelves.

The five were all representatives of the founding families of Mystic Falls, the only remaining founding families, at any rate.

"When is he supposed to get here?" Jane was the first to break the uneasy silence. She turned from the bright greenery of the front lawn of the estate, leveling the Mayor with a stare that would've made Janice Dickinson herself proud of it's bitchiness.

"He'll arrive whenever he feels the need to," a male voice sneered as the door to the library opened. The five all turned to the door to witness a man, enshrouded in a black cloak complete with hood, entering crisply. The cloak billowed about him, giving him all the appearance of Death himself.

"You always were one for the dramatics, weren't you?" Sirius snorted, pushing off of his elbows into a straight sitting position.

"Silence, dog." The figure snarled, lowering his hood. He paused directly in front of the Mayor and Carol, leaving Sheriff Granger and Zach to come in closed and form a sort of circle. They all looked to Mayor Lockwood to begin.

"I suppose you're wondering why I've called this meeting together, then?" He gazed over everyone in the room, watching their reactions vary from Jane's affirmative nod to Sirius' long suffering-sigh. The Mayor had to internalize an eye roll at the eternal fifteen year old Black heir.

"You're here because an old threat to the people of Mystic Falls has returned," he continued.

Sirius let out a guffaw at that, raising his eyebrow at the Mayor. "I'm sorry, that was just very 50's B sci-fi movie. I'll control myself next time."

"I'm glad you find this so amusing, Black. I'm sure you've all heard of the animal attacks that have taken place in the city recently?" The cloaked man asked, waiting for affirmations from the gathered people. "Well, the news hasn't exactly been forthright with the details of the attacks. The ten bodies that have been found now, were not attacked by animals."

"What's been committing these murders then?" Sheriff Granger asked, not noticing Zach Salvatore blanche next to her.

"The bodies were all drained of blood from major arteries, and all of the wounds were created via two puncture marks." The Mayor took over for the man in black.

"Fangs?" His wife questioned, elegant eyebrows downturned.

"They've come back?" Sirius intoned, suddenly quite humorless about the situation.

"Yes," The man in the black cloak said heavily. "Vampires have returned to Mystic Falls."

ooo

On the opposite end of the town, one Harry Potter was enjoying the overly bright, hot autumn day sunbathing on the banks of the river flowing from the Falls, where the back to school party had occurred. About an hour into the afternoon, Damon had joined him, having called Harry and suggesting the two meet up. Damon had compelled his way onto Zach Salvatore's cell phone plan very shortly after Binns' death, and he had maintained regular contact with the smaller boy since then.

The cool water of the river tickled Harry's toes as he basked in the sunlight like an enormous, lazy reptile. The sun-baked earth was delightful on his bare stomach, and he let out a small moan of pure happiness.

"You like the weather?" Harry could hear the smirk in Damon's question. He turned his head to the right, where Damon was seated, pushed up onto his elbows, and opened his eyes to look upon the other. Harry blinked owlishly for a few seconds, blind from the combination of sunlight and the fact that his glasses were in his bag, back up on a picnic table on the campground.

"I _adore_ this weather," Harry groaned again, smiling lazily. He was blind to Damon's eyes darkening lustily as they trailed over the teenager's slender, half naked body. Harry was wearing a pair of dark red board shorts and nothing else, hoping to darken his startlingly pale skin.

Damon was dressed more modestly, in a pair of black gym shorts and a matching tank top. Harry was secretly glad for this, as he wasn't sure if he could keep himself from jumping a shirtless Damon. The two had been on a few dates since the disastrous football scrimmage, but they hadn't progressed beyond hand holding or Damon putting his arm around Harry. The green-eyed teen wasn't sure if he was happy or not with this.

"I'm sure the Sun adores you just as much. It exists solely for days like this, spending the cloudy days dreaming of a time when it can provide you with the heat and comfort that you desire so greatly."

Harry had to suppress the shiver that raced down his spine at Damon uttering the word desire. "So poetic, Emerson. I didn't know you had it in you."

Damon placed his hand on the other boy's lower back. "There's a lot you don't know about me." He began stroking small circles onto Harry's backbone, enjoying the tremor the boy couldn't hold back.

"Enlighten me, then," Harry rolled over and sat up, facing Damon. This dislodged Damon's hand from his back, but the taller male merely planted it on Harry's hand.

"Let's see, I'm an Aries, I don't have any food allergies, and I think cows are cute," Damon's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "I like long walks on the beach, driving far over the speed limit, and taunting or insulting my brother as often and as harshly as possible."

Harry couldn't help but grin at the charming smile Damon plastered on his face. "Why?"

"Why do I think cows are cute? Well, for starters-"

"Damon," Harry interrupted, pursing his lips. "That's not what I was asking about, and you know it."

"Right for the jugular, eh killer?" Damon shook his head ruefully, he removed his hand from the top of Harry's and scratched his head lightly, thinking about how to tell the rather painful story.

"There once was a girl. She was beautiful," Damon inhaled and exhaled heavily before throwing a lopsided smile at Harry. "A lot like you in that department, actually. She was also very complicated and selfish, and at times not very kind. But she was very sexy and seductive."

"So which one of you dated her first?" Harry's lips turned up slightly in a wry smile.

"My answer and Stefan's answer tend to differ. Regardless, she was very special to me, and she would have chosen me. But then she died." He turned to face the river then, and Harry's breath left him at how heart achingly beautiful Damon Salvatore truly was. The slight breeze coming off of the river was ruffling his dark hair ethereally, and aside from that slight motion, he was as still as a Roman marble statue.

"How did she die?" The green eyed boy asked gently, grabbing Damon's hand once more and twining their fingers together. Damon gave a gentle squeeze in response.

"A fire," Damon answered, keeping his attention on the river. "A tragic fire."

Harry scooted closer to Damon, and let his head fall onto the other man's shoulder, offering silent comfort to the now brooding male.

He closed his eyes, placed a kiss on Damon's shoulder and allowed the sun to do it's work.

ooo

"Stefan!" Zach shouted upon entering his ancestral home. "Stefan!" The younger vampire appeared before him with a startling quickness.

"Did you have to do that?" Zach exclaimed, grabbing at his chest as his heart rate practically tripled.

"Yes," Stefan responded, stone faced. "Is there a particular reason you ran in here screaming for me like you were on fire?"

"Of course there is," Zach groused, sidestepping Stefan and making his way to a bottle of whiskey in the corner. "Teenagers. They've been alive for a hundred years and think they know everything. No respect for anyone."

"Zach," Stefan growled. "What's going on?"

"They know," Zach turned up a glass of whiskey, grimacing at the taste. "The Founders know that there are vampires in Mystic Falls again, and they're making plans to eradicate them...you. Whatever."

Stefan watched Zach turn up another shot as he waited for the man to continue. "Your brother, he's been sloppy with some of the people he's eaten. No effort to hide fang marks whatsoever. He may as well have written 'I was a vampire's martini' on the corpses."

"He has to be stopped," Stefan's face was a portrait of displeasure.

"My thoughts exactly." Zach motioned for Stefan to follow him, leading him into the basement of the Boarding House, a place where neither vampire ventured. They descended an unlit staircase into a stone room that appeared to be more of a dungeon than a basement, complete with a barred cell in the back.

"What is this?" Stefan breathed, lip curling in distaste at the medieval room.

"A dungeon of sorts," Zach answered, continuing into the room and opening a closet in the back. "Your father had it built when the house was first constructed. It was built to hold the vampires that were so rampant in your day. The shackles and bars are supposed to be unbreakable, even to vampire strength. They are untested though."

Stefan looked mildly disturbed as he knelt in a cell, running his finger along a rusted manacle stemming from the stone wall. Zach reappeared in his line of vision, carrying a basket overflowing with some form of greenery.

"Is that-"

"Vervain," Zach cut his ancestor off. "And not just any vervain, this vervain is especially strong. Weapons grade, if you will. If a vampire ingested even a small amount of this, the unlucky soul would be out for commission for days. You know, the Founder's Ball is coming up at the end of the week."

Stefan merely nodded, his mind already formulating their course of action. Brother or not, Damon Salvatore had to be brought to heel, or he would bring doom to them all.

ooo

Damon idly watched Harry as the human gathered his things and pulled a pale green t-shirt over his torso, causing the vampire to glare lightly at the offensive clothing. The two had lounged about the campsite at the Falls for as long as possible, and were only leaving now because it was sunset and Damon was treating Harry to dinner at the Grill before they turned in for the night.

"So," Harry attempted to reach maximum cuteness, beaming impishly at Damon and scuffing his flip-flop clad toes. "You've heard that the Founder's Ball is this Saturday, right?"

"Ooh, really?" Damon's eyes brightened at the thought. "I wonder who I should take? I bet Hermione would be the belle of the ball. All of the squirrels in Mystic Falls will be terribly jealous of her hair."

Harry couldn't stifle a giggle at the mental image, though he was trying very hard to muster a glare at the vampire for teasing him. "You are an awful, awful person, Damon Salvatore, and I hope something eats you."

"I am quite a catch, aren't I?" Damon's smile was downright sexy as he practically preened for his companion. "Admit it, you simply can't resist my style, good looks, and unflinching ability to listen to Taylor Swift."

"Yes, because I can't tell you how often I've dreamed of having a boyfriend so we can paint each other's toenails while listening to _You Belong With Me,_" Harry laughed.

Damon merely groaned in disgust at the thought, grabbing Harry around the waist and swinging him about slightly. "I can't even begin to tell you how horrifying that thought is."

Harry kept laughing, the sound reverberating beautifully in the rustic setting. Damon was stunned for an instant by how striking the boy in his arms was. Compact muscle, emerald green irises, and long, clean limbs that lasted for days. He shook himself out of the stupor quickly, reminding himself of the plan.

The vampire made a thoughtful noise as he studied Harry. "I suppose I could take you to the dance. As long as you don't wear yellow. You'll look like you have jaundice. Go with green."

"Handsome _and_ a gentleman. I'm so lucky," Harry sniggered.

ooo

"What exactly are we supposed to be looking for?" Harry was trying to tame the disgruntled look on his face as he sneezed for the forty seventh time. Not that he was counting.

"Anything old to go in the founder's exhibit at the ball," Elena answered, turning around to glower at her twin brother, who was seated on a crate eyeing the rest of the attic distastefully. "You know, it would go faster if you would help Jeremy and I go through these crates."

"But...I'll sneeze," Harry blinked, sneezing again as if to prove his point. "I don't understand why we can't just call Grandma Black and put her in the damn exhibit. She's old enough."

"Dear old Walburga would beat you senseless for even suggesting that," Jeremy snorted, pulling a pocketwatch out of a crate labelled 'Potter.'

"That looks intriguing," Harry hopped off of his perch and closed in on the watch.

"It was Grandpa's, wasn't it?" Elena's eyebrows creased together in thought.

Harry hmm-ed and adjusted his glasses. "I think so. It looks familiar enough, anyway."

Jeremy was turning the watch slowly, looking for any significant markings on the golden surface. He paused on the side of the watch, seeing a ridiculously small etching on the time piece. "C.P."

"We know it's a Potter heirloom, then." Elena's expression lightened as she took the watch from Jeremy. "I wonder who C.P. is, though."

"Founder's Ball display item: found, the mission is a success. Can I go back downstairs now?" Harry whined, playing with his glasses pathetically.

"Yes, geez," Elena hissed. She thrust the watch at Harry. "Keep this with you, Jer and I will stay up here to try and find something for the Black family."

Harry frowned at he gingerly took the pocketwatch, feeling the remnants of some strong magic on the object. Elena and Jeremy dove back into the plethora of crates in the attic, and Harry backed out of the room slowly, pocketing the watch as he turned to go to his room.

Upon reaching his room, he immediately bolted the door and barricaded it with a chair. He placed the watch on his desk, and pulled the Bennett family Tome he had possession of from under his bed. He placed it on the desk next to the pocketwatch, and flipped through the leathery pages briskly.

He allowed himself a small victory smile as he found the spell he needed before he closed his eyes and began to chant.

ooo

A few hours before the ball, Damon Salvatore was again seated on the roof of the Boarding House, brooding in the twilight. He was moderately disgusted with himself for his epically Stefan-esque behavior, but he figured it was acceptable once every century or so.

Tonight was, without a doubt, the most important step in his plan to date. Everything else had gone off without a hitch. Harry Potter had come into his true magical inheritance as the comet passed, and the boy was completely trusting of Damon. His own developing...feelings for the boy were a complication, and a ridiculous one at that.

He scowled wickedly at the darkening sky. No, his feelings for the witch were pointless. He loved Katherine, and tonight he would take Emily Bennett's crystal and be one step closer to freeing her. Potter was merely a tool, and Damon was orchestrating all of this for Katherine. He would free her, she would be with him forever, Stefan would be totally destroyed, and Damon would finally be able to enjoy his afterlife.

With this thought in mind, Damon climbed back through a window into the Boarding House and began to get ready for the Founder's Ball.

ooo

That night found Harry draped across a couch in his living room, awaiting Damon's entrance. Harry was the last one in the house, Jeremy having taken the watch over to the Lockwood estate, and Elena having left early to help Remus set up the dance.

He let out a listless sigh and, for the seven thousandth time, resisted the urge to send Damon a text message demanding he arrive faster. He had gone with the vampire's request, and was wearing dark green, though it was in the form of a tie, with a black vest, white shirt, and black slacks. He felt more than a little pretentious, but formal wear had never really been his thing, Harry mused. A knock at the door drove him from his reverie, and Harry quelled the need to skip giddily over to the door.

He opened it to reveal Damon Salvatore decked out in all black, as always. "I think I'm going to have to stage an intervention with your closet."

"You like it. It goes with the whole tall, dark, and force of nature-sexy thing I've got going on," Damon gave a charming smile, offering his arm to Harry, who had exited the house and was locking the door.

"I'm sorry, what was that? I couldn't hear you. Your ego was clogging my ears," Harry took the proffered arm, and the two began walking towards Damon's car.

They arrived at the Founder's Ball fashionably late, the ride over having been comfortable, if rather laconic. Harry noticed that Damon seemed markedly distracted, but chalked it up to his dragging the angst-fest feud between Damon and Stefan earlier that afternoon.

The entire first floor of the Lockwood home was open for the Ball. The foyer had been turned into a reception area, the massive living room was where the Founder's exhibit had been located, and, like any good mansion, the estate had it's own ballroom that didn't need alteration.

Harry and Damon entered the manor, only to be greeted by a flushed and giddy Hermione. Her hair was in a modern, streamlined up-do, with a few sleek curls of chestnut brown hanging about. She was wearing a pale pink dress, and was quite stunning.

"Harry!" She squealed, already chattering at a rate much too quick for Harry to process. Damon brushed his hand against Harry's before making a retreat deeper into the house, signaling that he was going to get refreshments.

In reality, the vampire was making his way towards the artifact display. He strolled into the room leisurely, and began browsing the myriad countertops for the Bennett pendant. The room had been set up with ordinary tables strewn about, and the relics scattered about them with no rhyme or reason. The more pretentious objects had their own descriptions, but most of the items were simply sitting there.

A sneer of triumph crossed his face as he found the crystal, a small, unassuming amber gem set into an iron necklace. Damon pocketed the talisman, smiling predatorily at nothing in general. He did so love it when a good plan came together. Unknown to himself, Damon was not the only person in the room looking to make away with an artifact.

Meanwhile, Harry had managed to escape Hermione, the girl was like a squid when she grabbed onto you, and was seated in the ballroom, smiling amiably and soaking up the happy atmosphere. Damon appeared a few minutes into his inspection of the room. He placed a sparkling cider of some sort in front of Harry, and carried a flute of champagne for himself. The dimness of his attitude earlier seemed to have dissipated, the green eyed teen noticed.

"You look like the cat that caught the canary," Harry sized Damon up as the vampire all but primped himself.

Damon simply arched a dark brow. "I'm only excited because I get to dance with the most beautiful person in the room."

Harry flushed darkly and fought a burgeoning smile, glaring balefully at Damon. The taller male held out his arm for Harry. "Once around the floor?"

Harry smiled demurely in response. "I'm not responsible for any broken toes or embarrassment that may stem from this."

"I have toes of steel," Damon pulled the boy up and led him out to the ballroom floor. "And I don't embarrass easily."

Damon tugged Harry flush against his chest, and began an uneasy pattern with him. After a few seconds, Harry allowed himself to relax and fell into the footwork much easier. While the two danced, drawing a jealous eye from Hermione, who was attending the dance with Bonnie due to a lack of date, Zach Salvatore slipped by their unoccupied table, pouring a vial of colorless, odorless liquid into Damon's champagne, before continuing towards the table where Richard and Carol Lockwood were located. He gave an almost imperceptible nod towards Stefan, who was taking to the dance floor with Elena.

Harry and Elena continued to dance with their respective Salvatore for the vast majority of the evening. They went back to their tables at roughly the same size, Harry complaining about foot cramps, and Elena unwilling to take Hermione's death glare any longer.

"I swear, if she had stared any longer, my hair would have burst into flames," Elena grumbled, rubbing at her browbone irritably.

Stefan chuckled at the girls' agitation. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Damon take a drink of his vervain-laced drink. "Excuse me for a second? I need to talk to Damon."

At Elena's response, Stefan hiked across the seating area and tapped Damon on the shoulder lightly as he reached the table. Damon was already aware of his brother's presence, of course, and turned to meet Stefan's cool gaze.

"Can I speak to you for a second? In private," Stefan added, gazing around the crowded ballroom. Damon looked at Harry for affirmation. Upon seeing the slight teen's nod, he rose from the table and gestured for Stefan to lead the way.

Damon followed his brother out of the Lockwood estate, and onto the front yard, where night had settled comfortably over the lush lawn.

"Alright, now little bro. What do y-" Damon's question was cut off by a searing pain racing through his veins. He groaned as waves of the debilitating pain consumed him.

"Perfect timing," Stefan muttered, catching his brother as he began to fall to the ground. He hefted Damon over his shoulder, and raced off to the Boarding House before his brother could regain consciousness.

Back at the party, Harry and Elena had met up, and were browsing the heritage display. Harry's eyes bugged out a little when they reached a book containing the names of the original founder's of Mystic Falls.

"Does that say Damon and Stefan Salvatore?" He asked, pointing at the registry.

"Yeah," Elena explained. "I came through here with Stefan earlier. Ancestors of our Damon and Stefan, they were named after them. Apparently the Salvatore name was like royalty here, even more than the Lockwoods, then Willow Creek happened. They lost someone they loved very much when Fell's Church was razed, and their own father shot both of them shortly afterwards."

Harry grimaced at the story. "And that episode was brought to you by the letter 'Prozac.' How terrible..."

Elena quirked a smile at her brother's quip. "Come on, let's get back to the action. Wait for the menfolk to show back up."

Unfortunately, neither of the Salvatore brothers made a reappearance at the party. The twins sought out Hermione and Bonnie's company, and the four spent the rest of the evening chatting and leeping themselves laughing. It wasn't until the two rode home in Elena's car before they sobered up to the fact they'd been left dateless.

"I'm sure the two of them just got into another fight and are busy licking their wounds at the Boarding House," Elena scoffed, checking her rear view mirror.

Harry merely nodded placatingly, resting his head on the window. "I tend to agree."

He closed his eyes and nodded off to sleep, dreaming of unlit stone passageways, burnt out ruins, and a glowing amber stone.

ooo

The first thing that Damon noticed was the fact that the stone floor he was splayed out on was highly uncomfortable. The second thing he noticed was the throbbing pain in his head.

"Ugh...I thought I left behind the headaches with the whole you know, living thing." He groaned, and attempted to massage his temples, only to find that his hands were shackled to the ground.

The vampire opened his eyes tentatively, only to find himself in the basement of the Boarding House. He'd been down here a couple of times, but was somewhat surprised to find himself a prisoner. He scanned the room, locating a snoozing Zach Salvatore in the corner, and also finding the vervain that he'd been drugged with.

"Tch," Damon scoffed. "So predictable." With a mighty heave and a slight intake of breath, he ripped the manacle holding his right arm straight out of the ground, and using his freed right arm, broke the chain on his left shackle.

He stood up somewhat shakily, and checked his jacket for the crystal. He found it safely nestled in a pocket, and stalked quietly over to his sleeping descendant. Damon kneeled in front of the chair Zach was slouched across.

"Wakey wakey, nephew mine," Damon whispered. Zach's only response was a slight whine, and a slow stretch before he opened his eyes groggily.

Before the human could focus on the shape in front of him, Damon slammed him up against the stone wall by his throat. Zach whimpered pathetically, now fully awake, as Damon squeezed his windpipe.

"Word to the wise: iron handcuffs don't work so well after two hundred years of neglect. Were you dropped on your head as a child?" Damon snarled, tightening his grip.

"You can't drink from me," Zach wheezed as his eyes began to water. "I've been ingesting this vervain for years now."

"Dearest Zach," Damon laughed indulgently, leaning in to whisper into his however many great-nephew's ear. "Who said anything about eating you?"

With that hypothetical question, Damon's grip on Zach's strengthened impossibly, and he ripped his arm back and to the left, tearing Zach's throat apart and sending a spray of blood across the stone wall as Zach fell to the side, dead before he hit the ground.

"I'm so not washing this wall either."

ooo

A/n: I am so much happier with this chapter, it's not even funny. This is probably my favorite of the story so far, and it's also where I begin *cue dramatic music* deviating from canon! Also, I completely made up Damon being an Aries. Harry's a Leo in Harry Potter canon, and the two signs are apparently compatible (I consulted an astrology book at Borders). Just go with it.

I hope everyone's January is going well, in the past two weeks I have had two job interviews, four inches of snow (in Atlanta!), been iced into my house for a week straight, and my xbox360's disc tray has decided to lose it's mind right after the warranty ran out and less than two months from the release of Dragon Age II.

Thank you SO much for the wonderful response to my story! Almost 4,000 hits, 60 favorites, and 100 alerts! I'm incredibly grateful.

REVIEW!

: )


	6. VI

Disclaimer: I'm just playing around with all of this. I have no ownership of either license.

**VI**

"_Evildoer doin' evil from a baby carriage,_

_And he was born with the same blue eyes, _

_Crystal ships dripping with ice. _

_Diamonds coruscate in the night._

_Fireworks, electric bright." _

_-Werewolf, CocoRosie_

ooo

"A pocket watch?" Sheriff Jane Granger raised an eyebrow at the cloaked man in front of her as he placed the small golden item on her desk.

"Yes," the man's reply was sibilant. The man under the hood appeared to be eternally cheesed off, Sheriff Granger noticed.

"How exactly is this supposed to help us with our undead problem?"

"Leave that to me. Rest assured, this is no mere pocket watch. This device was specifically designed by Charlus Potter himself to debilitate the vampires."

"Bu-" The Sheriff was interrupted by the cantankerous man.

"No questions," he hissed. "I will do the work, the rest of the Founders and yourself merely need to create a plan to round up and dispose of the vermin after I incapacitate them."

"Very well," Jane murmured, seating herself behind her large cherry-wood desk. "You'll be holding onto the device then?"

"Indeed," the man was indignant. "Mind you, yourself and the other members of the Council need to discover who the vampires actually are. It won't do us any good to incapacitate a group of creatures and then be unable to locate them."

"Well, someone who only comes out at night should be fairly obvious." Jane was peering at the man in black with a bemused expression painted on her face.

He meerly sneered his displeasure at her inane statement. "The vampires in question may very well have found a way to shield themselves from the Sun's harmful rays."

"I am a police officer, keep in mind," Jane began going through the paperwork on her desk pointedly. "I am well aware of how to find suspicious persons and play connect the dots. Are we through here?"

"Quite," the shrouded man answered. "Inform the others of this development, and I will seek you out when I find the means to activate the device. We will then plan the eradication of these vampires."

Jane looked up to nod at the man, but all she faced was an empty office. She shook her head, finding herself nostalgic for the days when she would have been surprised by a man disappearing into thin air in her office.

ooo

"Damon?" Stefan's eyes were wide, wholly surprised by his brothers' appearance.

"Surprised to see me, little brother?" Damon was lounging on a daybed in Stefan's bedroom, having made his way out of the basement a few hours earlier to find an empty house. He had correctly assumed Stefan was out hunting for gerbils or something, and had made himself comfortable in the younger vampire's room.

"How are you up here? You...I...er," Stefan trailed off, eyeing his elder sibling warily. Damon was up and a hair's breadth away from Stefan before the younger could even blink.

"I'm not some drunk sorority chick, Stefan. You can't just roofie me." He snarled at Stefan, lightning practically crackling as ice blue eyes met forest green. They held contact for a long, tense moment before Damon turned away and stalked across the room. "The vervain was a nice trick, but I've been living off of fresh human blood for almost one hundred and fifty years now, Stefan. I'm pretty awesome."

"Oh, and I stole my ring back from your desk drawer. Not very creative with the hiding places, btw. That means 'by the way,' Stefan." Damon continued, oozing arrogance.

"You can't keep doing this, Damon," Stefan sighed resignedly. "Killing people messily, living off of resentment and anger alone. I'm just trying to go about living my life, and you refuse to do the same."

"You are such a drama queen. 'Go about living my life,'" Damon's tone was wistful. "See, therein lies your eternal struggle. You're dead, dude. Get over it."

"The Founding families know that there are vampires in Mystic Falls again," Stefan grated out, moving to sit down on the daybed Damon had vacated to threaten him. "They're going to figure out that the vampires are us, and they're going to come for us."

"Let them," Damon was nonchalant. "I won't be here much longer."

"What do you mean?" Stefan asked lowly.

"Everything is in place for me to reopen the Tomb," Damon revealed with a triumphant expression. "All I need is to give Harry the crystal Emily Bennett used and ask him to use some of his mojo on it. Once Katherine is out of there, I'm out of here. You can go about 'living' here with your teenage girlfriend who will grow old and die one day, since you'll never turn her."

Stefan winced at the cutting remarks, however casually delivered. "What makes you think that Katherine will want you with her? And what about Harry? He won't take this laying down."

Damon frowned at that comment. "Katherine will want me with her," he was sure of this. "Harry doesn't have to know about any of this. He'll do his magic thing, and then I'll rescue Katherine and disappear from Mystic Falls. He might be a little broken-hearted for a while, but he'll move on."

"Really?" Stefan quirked an eyebrow. "You're not planning on giving him to dear old Katherine? She'll be a bit thirsty after 146 years locked in a cellar with no blood around."

"No!" Damon's eyes flashed with anger. "She can't have him. I mean, there's not really a point in killing him. Whatever, look: I'll make sure I clean up after myself when I eat from now on, but you can't go crying to him about this shit. Remember what happened last time?"

Stefan flinched at the memory of the half brain-dead Ginny Weasley on the roof of the Apothecary. "Okay. Is this a truce?"

Damon's face screwed up in disgust. "Don't make me vomit. This is a temporary agreement to not fuck up each other's plans. Once I get Katherine out of the remains of Fell's Church, it's gonna be right back to making your ass as miserable as possible."

"It's a truce, then." Stefan smiled winningly.

"Gag me with an ice pick."

ooo

The Sunday following the Founder's Ball, Harry floundered his way out of the bed at about ten in the morning, earning a threatening growl from Chairman Meow, who made himself comfortable on Harry's pillow before emitting some loud snores. Harry clawed along the bedside table for his glasses, and placed them on his nose gingerly.

The wizard stumbled towards the bathroom, scratching at his nose groggily. He threw the door open to reveal Ginny Weasley, standing at the sink in sky blue panties and a bra, brushing her teeth. She immediately froze as he opened the door, and then two held a horrifyingly long stare, neither able to move or speak.

"Oh," Harry stuttered, flushing tomato red. "So sorry, I didn't know you were here. I'll just...erm, yeah."

He quickly escaped the awkward situation and swung the door shut, turning and falling against it. His green eyes were wide as saucers behind his glasses, and his sharp cheeks were still pink from embarrassment. Harry exhaled loudly and shakily made his way downstairs, still clad in only a pair of black cheerleading shorts he'd stolen from Elena.

"Sirius!" He called, wandering through the living room and into the kitchen. "Remus!"

"What is it, shrimp?" Sirius answered, seated at the table and munching on a muffin of some sort. Remus was sitting next to him, sipping at a cup of coffee. Both of the men assumed an amused glance at Harry's state of undress and clearly frazzled visage.

"There is a girl in my bathroom," Harry announced, clearly disgruntled.

"And she's your twin sister, Elena," Sirius explained slowly. He was eyeing Harry oddly, no doubt thinking the boy had hit his head overnight.

"No, not Elena," Harry huffed, crossing his arms over his naked chest. "It's a girl from school Ginny, Jeremy and she have been...not dating."

Harry's face scrunched up at the end of that comment, confused about the proper terminology for a slightly slutty girl who was using the boy that was head over heels in love with her for validation and sex...with an emphasis on the sex.

"What?" Remus' face developed a thunderous expression, causing Harry to wince.

"Umm...yeah, that's about all. She was brushing her teeth. She's paler than me, and that's kinda scary to be honest. Maybe Jer should take her down to the river to get a tan," he paused for breath. "I went yesterday, do I look any darker? Probably not, I never get-"

"Harry!" Sirius interrupted the boys' rambling. "Thank you for informing us, and Remus isn't mad at you, he's mad at our soon-to-be deceased son. Go back upstairs and do whatever it is you teenagers do these days. We'll take care of Jeremy later, and we'll do it without letting him know you ratted him out. We'll blame Elena or something."

Harry smiled sheepishly and exited the room, desperately wanting to shower, but now wary of the bathroom.

ooo

The week passed in a terribly boring way. Harry kept shooting daggers at Jeremy with his eyes, Jeremy kept tripping Harry and enacting little pranks such as replacing the filling in Harry's cookies with toothpaste, leaving a centipede in the shower, and setting off a firecrackers outside of Harry's door while the other teen was studying. Needless to say, Sirius had not held up his promise to avoid outing Harry, and Jeremy had taken it upon himself to wreak vengeance on the smaller teen.

No traceable counterattacks had been made by Harry, though Jeremy had woken up one morning to find his favorite pair of jeans draped over the highest branch of the tallest tree in their yard. The household as a whole had been moderately confused by that one, but Elena hadn't missed the flash of smugness in Harry's too-green eyes.

Elena wondered idly if Sirius and Remus would punish or reward her for asphyxiating the other two in ziploc bags. She was immensely thankful for the fundraising car wash the following Saturday, so she could escape the war zone that had become her house.

The Sexy Suds Car Wash was co-sponsored by the cheerleading squad and the student council, which Elena had re-joined a few days after her cheerleading debacle. She was moderately excited for the event itself, but particularly looking forward to seeing Stefan, who had agreed to meet her there.

The girl pulled her dark brown hair from it's ponytail, allowing it to cascade along her back. Elena gazed critically at herself in the mirror, making sure she looked alright for the day. She decided to wear a green tank top and a pair of short, but not obnoxiously so, jean shorts. Giving herself a final once over in the mirror, and declaring herself acceptable, she slid on a pair of shoes and jaunted down the stairs.

"Taking the car, I'll be at the car wash, call if you need me." Elena was out of the door before Sirius, Remus, or Harry, who had taken to remaining in their shadows so Jeremy couldn't get to him, could register her sentence.

A satisfied grin crept on the girl's face as the engine of her and Harry's car turned over, and she pulled out of the driveway with a quickness.

The wash was being held at a local auto parts store, not overly glamorous in Elena's book, but it was for a good cause. The chance at possibly getting Stefan shirtless was worth washing any nasty cars that came by. Oh, and raising money for the school. That was also a good cause.

Elena's grin had morphed into a more thoughtful expression as she made a right turn. Stefan Salvatore was a slight point of contention for her at the moment. He knew almost everything about her, as he had this gentility that made you want to talk to him. However, she still knew next to nothing about him. Nothing about his past anyway, only trivial things like his favorite color and so on.

That and the fact that he'd completely phone and text screened her after the Founder's Ball for a whole day had her raising a figurative eyebrow at the boy's actions. She'd had regular contact with him at school, but his promises to be more forthcoming with his personal life were unrealized at this point. As it turned out 'mysterious loner' became 'irritating escapist' in a heartbeat.

She wondered idly if Harry was having the same issue with Damon. The two also seemed a little stilted after the party, though with them it appeared to be equal parts Harry and Damon. Elena made a mental note to ask her twin about Damon's forthcomingness when she got home that evening. She smiled as she pulled into the parts store, Bonnie and Ron were standing at the street with an enormous cardboard sign between the two of them, feigning enthusiasm at nine in the morning.

Hermione was in the middle of the lot, megaphone in one hand, sponge in the other, glaring threateningly at Vivian Wu, a girl on the student council. Elena chuckled at the scene as she clambered out of the car.

"This is the _Sexy_ Suds fundraiser, not the Study Suds fundraiser," Hermione hissed, brandishing the sponge wildly at the student council member. Her hair was in a monstrously fluffy ponytail, and she was wearing a white wifebeater and a pair of practically invisible blue shorts. Poor Vivian, who was blushing shamefully at Hermione's cutting flow of remarks, was dressed much more demurely in a pair of regular length gym shorts and a t-shirt.

Elena hurried towards Hermione, hoping to cut her off and spare Vivian some of the high strung cheerleader's ire. "Hermione!" The brown eyed girl called as she got close to her friend.

Hermione rounded on Elena like she was under attack, before she calmed at the sight of the twin. "Elena, you have to help me. These nerdettes are going to destroy my fundraiser and quite possibly the very fabric of the school social ladder. Vivian Wu is dressed like a carpenter, and Bernadette has to leave at twelve thirty for her cello lesson."

Elena narrowly avoided outright laughing at the girl, and somehow managed to keep a straight face on.

In the background, Vivian Wu attempted to slink away while Elena had the bushy-haired teenagers' attention, muttering every curse word she knew at Hermione.

"It'll be okay, girl. I'll help you manage the student council volunteers," Elena finally managed to grind out.

"Thank you so much," Hermione breathed, tension dissolving off of her shoulders. "I really owe you one."

"No problem," The sleek haired brunette responded, her eyes scanning the people working the car wash. "Have you seen Stefan? He was supposed to meet me here. He said he'd bring breakfast."

"No, I haven't." Hermione turned a pitying gaze on her friend. She allowed herself a malicious internal smirk for exactly seven seconds before chastising herself for being overly jealous.

Elena couldn't help but feel a little disappointed at the all-too expected absence.

ooo

Back at the house, Harry was busy angst-ing in his bed. Actually, he was alternating between two forms of angst: relationship angst and self-disgust-for-having-relationship-angst angst. Aside from an apologetic text the day after the Founder's Ball and a single latte on Monday morning via Stefan, Harry hadn't had any contact with Damon.

A loud groan of frustration left Harry's mouth as he flopped over onto his back, his arm flinging out to the side with the motion. His initial reservations about Damon's flirty and mildly arrogant nature as well as Bonnie's warning the morning after the passing of the comet were coming back to bite him. Harry found himself a little bit more attached to the older man than perhaps smart.

Even Stefan had warned him against developing any feelings for Damon. Harry really should have paid closer attention to Stefan, most siblings don't say things like that without due reason.

So what if he was smart, charming, and insanely handsome? So what if he made Harry feel more alive and had begun lifting the veil of apathy that had shrouded Harry since his parents deaths?

"Ugh!" Harry slung the arm now hanging off of his bed back over his face, wanting nothing more than for his mattress to eat him like so many cheese puffs.

He paused in his misery for a second. Since when was Harry Potter such a shrinking violet? He was Harry-Fucking-Potter! Capable of balancing awful chemical equations in a single bound, fully able to get out of any punishment and bring any adult to their knees by fluttering his emerald green eyes. He'd once given a freshman girl a nosebleed simply by complimenting her scarf. He was important. People knew him.

And now he had magic! Bibbity-bobbity-bash someone's brains out, pull a rabbit out of whatever he wanted to pull it out of magic. Screw Damon Salvatore if he just wanted to play around with Harry's feelings. Harry could transmute the older man into a leafy seadragon or turn his entire wardrobe carnation pink! He wasn't entirely sure how to accomplish either of those feats, but he was assured that it was within his powers.

With newfound resolve and fire in his eyes, Harry leapt from his bed and began to do...absolutely nothing. He let out a dejected moan and collapsed back on the bed, burrowing into his comforter. Revenge was all good and well, but had Damon actually done anything worth vengeance?

A soft knock at the door roused the boy from his brooding, and he sat up with a pout. "Come in," Harry grunted, ruffling his hair in agitation.

The door opened slowly, and Jeremy stood in the doorframe. "Why don't you come downstairs?"

"I'm busy," Harry responded haughtily. Jeremy quirked a brown eyebrow in response.

"Oh, really? Trying to figure out how to create an entire wardrobe with only a comforter?" Jeremy plowed on through Harry's scathing glare. "Come on, let's go downstairs."

"Why do you want me to go down there?" Harry pulled the comforter tighter to his chest.

"Why don't you want to go down there?" Jeremy began approaching his brother intently.

"Don't answer a question with another question," Harry frowned. Before he could continue, though, his larger yet younger brother pounced. An embarrassing squeak left the slight teen as he was hefted easily onto Jeremy's shoulder, comforter and all. Harry's legs were hanging down Jeremy's back, and his face was somewhere around the younger boy's navel.

"Let go of me, you troll!" Harry cried, flailing like a fish out of water.

"Nope, you wouldn't come downstairs on your own, so I'm gonna get you there. Stop squirming, you're gonna make me drop you." Jeremy made sure his slender brother was secure in his grip, though still shrieking and thrashing about, before descending the stairs. When he reached the bottom, he turned into the living room and tossed Harry onto the couch, who landed with all the grace of a sack of potatoes.

"Oof!" The wind was knocked out of the smaller boy as he made impact on the couch. "You behemoth! I'm gonna kick your ass," Harry wheezed, rearranging his limbs and making sure his glasses were firmly in place before moving into a kneeling position and glaring at Jeremy.

Jeremy just smirked mockingly at Harry before pointing behind the green-eyed boy. "Maybe later. Your boyfriend is in the kitchen, I said I'd get you down here for him."

Harry's rage fizzled into confusion as Jeremy turned and bounded back up the stairs. The twin turned around to gape at the entryway to the kitchen, where Damon was lounging against the frame.

"Yo," he smiled at Harry, who tramped down the warmth that spread in his chest at that.

"Hi," Harry was still a little dazed.

"Jeremy told me that chicken parmesan is your favorite, and I happen to be a good cook. Italian roots demand it," Damon turned into the kitchen, leaving Harry to gather himself before following. Harry struggled out of the comforter that was now tangled around his body. Wearing only a pair of red sweatpants and an old chemistry club tee, the teen was not dressed to impress.

He subconsciously began to pat down his hair before scowling at the action and ceasing. He had no reason to attempt to impress the other male. As far as Harry was concerned, they were going no further until Damon began to reciprocate more.

Harry ignored the slight squeezing in his chest at the thought as he strode into the kitchen purposefully. Damon was at the stove, looking oh-so delectable in an impossibly black deep v-neck, his pants obscured by a folded over white apron. Harry's heart skipped a beat at the sight of the man in an apron, making him roll his eyes at the fact that even Damon plus domesticity caused him to swoon.

"I figure if you're gonna dump me, you should at least know who you're dumping." Damon didn't look away from the marinara he was stirring.

He was a paradox in the kitchen: complete badassery with broad shoulders and a tight frame, a total lack of color in his wardrobe, and those wicked facial expressions, yet he seemed perfectly content to stand there fixing Harry's favorite meal, a pleasant spark in those icy blue eyes.

Damon Salvatore was inhumanly perfect, and Harry realized with a start that he had all too quickly become ensnared by this quicksand. He was sinking wholly into Damon Salvatore's grasp.

The thing was, he wasn't so sure he disliked it.

ooo

The wind swept through the trees in an easy breeze, cooling the autumn air. Elena was moderately thankful for this as she began rinsing her fourth Hummer, cursing the well-to-do inhabitants of Mystic Falls and their gargantuan vehicles.

Her irritation was evident as she a look of pure disgust marred her pretty features. She glared unseeingly at her reflection in the black metal body of the car.

"Stefan's supposed to be here?" Bonnie asked, approaching her warily from behind.

Elena started at her friend's appearance, but caught herself from whipping around and accidentally giving Bonnie an impromptu shower.

"Yes," Elena answered through gritted teeth. If anything, her scowl intensified.

"How late are we talking?" Bonnie made herself busy by making change for the middle aged woman driving the massive SUV.

"Somewhere around the hour mark," Elena cut off the spray of water. She glanced over the black leviathan before deeming it properly washed.

"Thank you for helping out!" Bonnie chirped at the driver of the vehicle. She then turned to face Elena directly. "Maybe he just has some kinda drama going on?"

Elena cut her eyes at her friend, showing her displeasure at the thought. "He's always got some kind of drama going on, and apparently, I don't deserve an explanation about any of it, regardless of how many times it directly affects me."

"Have you tried asking him?" The two walked back over to the money table, where Vivian Wu was seated next to the student council president. Bonnie's chocolate brown eyes practically shone with concern at Elena.

"Of course. Every question gets some vague non-answer." Elena's frustration was palpable.

"Speak of the devil," Bonnie murmured. She pointed at the entrance to the auto-shop's parking lot, where Stefan was pulling in. "He may very well have just overslept, Elena. Try to cut him some slack, he seems like a really nice guy."

Elena pursed her lips before her whole face deflated a bit. "You're right. We've been dating for all of a month, and I've already become _that _girl. Ew."

"Simmer down, Eeyore. Enjoy your day. Try to get him to take his shirt off?" Bonnie giggled as Elena grinned wryly.

"Done and done," she replied, her anger from earlier having totally dissipated. Stefan approached the two sheepishly, aware that he'd gone AWOL on Elena a few too many times for comfort.

"Hello Bonnie, Elena," he greeted, his lips upturned tamely at the two girls. Bonnie nodded in reply, and Elena smiled glowingly at the male.

"Hey, there," Elena vocalized. "How are you doing?"

"I'm well," Stefan answered. "Sorry for being late this morning, I was talking to Damon and lost track of time."

"It's fine," Elena's grin became more sincere. "I've just been rinsing cars all morning."

"How glamorous," Stefan's tone oozed sarcasm. He sidestepped Bonnie, who had begun talking to Vivian, to pull Elena into a quick hug. "I really am sorry for this morning, and for the Founder's dance, and-"

"It really isn't a problem," Elena laughed breathlessly, interrupting Stefan. "You're here now, yeah?"

"Yeah," he replied.

"That's all that really matters," Elena pulled back and smiled warmly at the vampire, causing a rush of emotion to overtake him.

"You're wonderful, did you know that?"

"I've been told on occasion," Elena's response garnered soft laughter from the two.

"Hey, lovebirds. Hermione's coming over here, and she looks a little ragged." Bonnie warned, her tone a little dark as she watched the frizzy haired brunette stomp towards them. Elena and Stefan separated, and Vivian Wu made herself scarce as Hermione approached.

"New assignments!" Hermione barked, now wielding a clipboard. "Stefan, you're on car washing detail. Bonnie, you and Elena take over the money table, and I'll take over your spot holding up the roadside signs with Ron. Break!"

"She is no Sue Sylvester," Bonnie quipped, moving to take a seat behind the table that was home to the donation jar, which was really a money tray in a safety deposit box.

"I guess I'll go wash some cars," Stefan began to walk off until Elena called after him, noticing his hand glint in the bright morning sunlight.

"Aren't you gonna take off your ring? Or your shirt?"

"For the ring, no. It's a family heirloom, passed down through the generations and whatnot. It won't come off. As for the shirt, maybe. Do you really want to allow all of the forty year old soccer moms of Mystic Falls the pleasure of ogling me shirtless, up close, all day?" Stefan replied, humor lacing his voice by the end of his question.

"The shirt stays on," Elena scowled at a random car behind Stefan. He laughed, mesmerizing the twin for a moment, before he left towards the others students washing cars.

Elena took a seat next to Bonnie, who was straightening up the cash tray. The two made small talk as the morning progressed into the afternoon. Bonnie shed her jacket as the sun rose to prominence, revealing a skimpy bikini top. The crisp morning breeze turned into a Godsend as the heat of the day began to take root. The two girls made small talk with one another until a customer appeared, at which point they would turn their attention to the harried mother or the overpaid yuppie.

The day passed uneventfully until an elderly man came to pay Elena for his car wash. "Hello, young lady," the wizened man greeted.

"Hello," Elena smiled graciously. "I hope your wash went well."

"Yes, it did," the old man responded. "That Stefan is such a nice boy. When I first moved here, I stayed at the Salvatore Boarding House. Stefan was just passing through to visit his uncle. None of us even knew he was here until the attack. His uncle was killed. Mauled by a bear in the woods."

Elena's eyebrows rose in shock, Bonnie's face a mirroring expression as she eavesdropped. "His uncle? Zach?"

"No," the man shook his head. "Joseph."

Elena frowned, "I'm sorry sir. I'm not familiar with the story."

The old man scoffed as he dropped some money onto the table in front of Elena and Bonnie. "Well, how could you be? It happened years ago."

"When, exactly?" Elena's tone became suspicious as she gazed over the man's shoulder at Stefan, who paused in washing a car to smile at her as he caught her stare.

The man froze in thought, "It was early June, 1953...yeah, 1953."

ooo

The smell of tomatoes and fresh herbs bathed the kitchen of the Black household. Harry's eyes were closed in pleasure as he allowed himself to drown in the fantastic scent. His full pink lips were poised in a small smile, and his inky black hair was as delightfully frazzled as always.

Harry was sitting on a stool at the breakfast bar located flush with the back of the oven, directly facing Damon.

"So, let's start with Katherine," Damon's eyes were trained on the cutting board, hacking away at a cut of chicken. "She was the most beautiful girl I had ever met. She had this perfect olive skin, and her laugh was ridiculous. When she laughed, you couldn't help but laugh with her."

Harry found himself smiling as Damon's baritone voice filled with warmth.

"She was so much fun," Damon continued, now breading the chicken. "She was also selfish, impatient, entitled, and impulsive. Enter Stefan. I did some things I'm not very proud of, and I regret not being able to make it right before she died. I miss her, but I'm no longer crippled by her loss."

"You really cared for her, didn't you?" Harry asked somewhat rhetorically, as Damon tossed a chicken filet into a pan. "I know you've heard this a thousand times, and I've said it before also, but I'm sorry. I understand what it's like to lose someone you love. I know how hard it is to continue from that, and I'm sorry you had to go through it."

Damon smiled beautifully at the green eyed boy, throwing some garlic into the sauce. "Thank you. It's not as trite coming from you, I promise."

His reply earned him a quick pink flush on Harry's cheeks, as well as a thankful smile.

"I'm also an avid reader," Damon carried on. "Poe is my favorite, but I'm not a snob. I'm pretty partial to Ellis, _American Psycho_ and all that. I'm a bit of a pop culture junkie, and I'll watch almost anything on television. If you tell anyone this, I'll kill you, but I do particularly enjoy _Grey's Anatomy_. _Up_ is a work of cinema genius, but as a general rule, the more explosions in a movie the better."

"I cry at least three times every single time I see _Up_," Harry interrupted, pointedly avoiding eye contact with Damon, who was throwing the nearly completed meal into the oven and eyeing Harry disbelievingly.

"You're such a chick," Damon smirked that liquid sex smirk again. "I'm a little more iffy on modern music. I'm more of a classic rock kinda guy."

"The wardrobe gave that one away, oh man of mystery." Harry chuckled.

"I'll have you know that I'm not above actual classical stuff. I've never met a pianist I didn't like." The vampire pulled the now baked and bubbly chicken dish from the oven. "I _am_ above most music that's on the radio now, however."

"So I shouldn't blast my Nicki Minaj album later? Damn. Now I have to think of what we're going to do after dinner." Harry grinned impishly.

"I can think of some things," Damon's tone of voice took the younger male's breath away. "But for now, dinner is served."

Damon presented the finished, and delectable looking, chicken parmesan on the countertop. Harry couldn't help but salivate as a serving of the dish was placed on a plate and set in front of him.

"Does it meet your approval?" Damon smiled engagingly, and Harry was again struck by his dark beauty.

"Less talking, more eating."

The rest of the evening was a pleasant blur for the younger teen, as Damon kept him laughing with his biting opinions of the other inhabitants of Mystic Falls. Damon hung around for about an hour after they finished eating, before a text message had him reluctantly leaving Harry, promising another date that week.

Harry then began putting the remnants of their fantastic dinner up, saving the leftovers for later. He was placing the tupperware container into the refrigerator when Elena rushed into the kitchen.

"Harry!" She exclaimed, nearly causing Harry to fall backwards in surprise.

"Calm down, there Kim Possible. What's the malfunction?" The male twin readjusted his glasses as he closed the door.

Elena's pale skin was flushed red, and there was a panicked gleam in her doe brown eyes. "Will you come with me to the library? They have new archives, don't they?"

"Of course," Harry decided to be complacent due to his sister's clear distress. Before he could ask any question regarding this, however, Elena was already out of the kitchen and making her way towards the car. Harry hurried after her, grabbed a light jacket, and slid on a pair of flip-flops as he practically ran out of the door.

Elena was already in the car, and was cranking it as Harry ducked into the passenger seat. "What's going on, sis?"

"Have you noticed anything...off about Damon?" Elena asked, pulling out of the driveway, eyes firmly on the road.

"Aside from his fiery hatred for Stefan and his penchant for disappearing acts, no." Harry frowned, scouring his memory.

"Nothing else?"

"Well," Harry began, "and this is going to sound really odd, but just bear with me. He's oddly...perfect, sometimes. Like, his skin is flawless, his hair is always perfect, and normal little things like a bloodshot eye or a hangnail never seem to happen to him. Stefan is the same way, though. I always just assumed it was good genes."

Elena nodded, "speaking of, have you noticed anything odd about Stefan?"

Harry's mind immediately flashed to the incident with Jeremy's belt buckle and Stefan's non-bleeding hand. His answer was hesitant at best. "No...not really."

"Don't lie to me right now," Elena snapped, causing Harry to flinch slightly. "I'm sorry. I'm trying to figure something out. No matter how weird or freaky it may seem, have you noticed _anything_ going on with him?"

"You remember the football scrimmage?" At Elena's nod, Harry continued, "I'm sure you remember Jeremy's fight with Tyler, then. Well, Stefan broke it up. When he did, Jeremy's belt buckle cut his hand open. It was bleeding rather freely. I saw it about five minutes later, though, and it wasn't bleeding. In fact, there wasn't even a cut. His skin was completely unmarred."

His twin sister frowned intently at that, clearly confused by the revelation. She pulled into the Mystic Falls public library at this point, and all but sprinted into the building.

"The two also have matching rings. A family crest of some sort, as Stefan explained it to me. Not odd in and of itself, but the fact that neither of them will take it off is a little weird." Elena said as the two searched out the old newspaper archives.

"What's going on, what's brought all this about?" Harry was nonplussed at his sister's aggressive need to find whatever she was looking for. Yes, the Salvatore brothers had some oddities, but was it worth ransacking the library?

"Today, at the car wash, an old man came and talked to me while donating money in return for his wash," Elena answered. "He then described how had known Stefan previous to the event."

"What's so odd about that?" Harry asked, watching his sister frantically searching the filing cabinets.

She made a small sound of victory as she pulled out a folder. Elena essentially threw the folder on a nearby table before scattering the papers across the surface. She paused, stunned, as she found the issue she was looking for.

"Elena?" Harry was increasingly nervous at his sister's reaction, but stayed clear of the table, most of him unwilling to approach and discover the clearly upsetting news.

"1953," Elena breathed, slowly picking up the issue of the paper she'd been looking for.

"What?"

"1953," she repeated, stronger this time. "He met Stefan in 1953. There was an attack at the boarding house. Much like the attacks that have been happening recently."

Harry made a small sound of distress and cautiously approached his sister. When he got close enough to read the headline, it confirmed her story, shouting out the death of one Joseph Salvatore. Directly underneath the headline was a picture of the boarding house, and standing in front of it looking exactly the same, was one Stefan Salvatore.

Elena's shock wore off, and she clutched the paper harshly. "Come on!"

Harry was hard pressed to keep up with her as she sprinted back towards the car. He barely managed to close the door before she was racing out of the parking lot in the direction of Damon and Stefan's home.

Harry didn't even try to speak to his twin as they barreled off towards the boarding house. Half of him wanted there to be a logical explanation, but the half of him that recognized that Harry himself was a supernatural creature was aware that the explanation was going to be anything but.

Elena was out of the car before she'd turned it off, and ran up the driveway towards the entrance, leaving Harry cursing in her wake as he struggled with getting the key from the ignition while unbuckling his seatbelt. She held a constant stream of knocks on the old oak door as Harry approached, and the two waited with bated breath for the door to open.

When it did open, Elena launched herself through the door like a harpy of ancient lore, again leaving Harry in her wake. He followed her demurely into the den, noticing Stefan holding the door open and Damon lounging on a dark couch.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite siblings. To what do we owe the pleasure?" Damon asked, lazily sitting up. His eyes were oddly alert despite his demeanor, and he shot a knee-weakening grin at Harry.

"Shut up!" Elena snapped, before whirling around to face Stefan. Harry sidestepped her and made his way towards Damon warily, pooling his magic in case things went south and the brothers decided to bake them into a pie or something.

Elena slung the newspaper at Stefan, clearly incensed at the man's betrayal and lies regarding his nature. She took in a deep breath before speaking to the shellshocked man.

"What are you?"

ooo

A/n: Sorry about the two week wait. Real life struck me again. I have a dental abscess, student loan payments and rent payments due on the same day while being unemployed, had a hypoglycemic fit earlier today, and one of my very good friends was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer earlier this week.

Needless to say, things have been a little rough for me. On the positive side, I now have a job! As a seamstress, lol. No lie. Seamster?

Oh, well.

Please review! Tell me if you liked it!

: )


	7. VII

Disclaimer: If I owned The Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter, Dobby would be alive, Jeremy would be shirtless, and Isobel would be in _every_ episode, that spicy bitch. Alas, I don't.

**VII**

"_Your grace is wasted in your face, your boldness stands alone among the wreck._

_Now learn from your mother or spend your days biting your own neck._

_But it was not your fault, but mine,_

_And it was your heart on the line._

_I really fucked it up this time._

_Didn't I, my dear?"_

_-Little Lion Man, Mumford & Sons_

ooo

The atmosphere of the room went from tense to electrically charged in an instant. Stefan's eyebrows practically met his hairline in shock, while Damon maintained a neutral expression. Elena was all but panting in fury, her delicate features drawn up and tightened into a caricature of an incensed fairy. All the while, Harry kept sucking up all of the energy he could. His emerald green eyes shot back and forth between the brothers, preparing himself to defend his sister if necessary.

"What?" Stefan finally broke the uncomfortable silence, a resigned look settling on his overly perfect face.

"You heard me. _What_ are you?" Elena's desperation was tangible in the room, and Stefan took a step towards her in concern, frowning when she backed away.

"Everything you know and every belief that you have is about to change. Are you ready for that?"

"_What are you!"_ The petite brunette was practically beside herself at this point, nearly shrieking.

Harry's powers began to react to the intensity in the room, causing his midnight black hair to stand on end, and cracking a picture frame on a nearby mantle. He found that he was calmed despite himself when Damon appeared beside him and placed a hand on Harry's lower back. Damon's face was oddly somber as he met the smaller teen's eyes, and the two returned their attention to their respective siblings.

"I'm a vampire," Stefan finally answered, lips set into a grim line. Elena stood stone still for an instant, seemingly un-breathing, before bolting from the room, probably for the car. Stefan didn't hesitate at all before sprinting after her at a clearly inhuman speed.

Harry was nearly paralyzed at the answer, and he turned to face Damon with disbelieving green eyes. His heart was pounding in his ears, and his blood rushed though his veins with the force of a freight train. All of the magic he had accumulated fizzled into the air in his shock, and he found himself quite defenseless against the vampire. Despite all logic, though, Harry found himself still trusting the two. After all, they could have killed Elena and himself at any time previous to this and never had.

"Is it true?" Harry whispered, reaching a hand up and brushing Damon's razor sharp cheekbone. He received a firm nod from the blue eyed man in response. Harry's face scrunched into a frown. As disappointing as it was that he'd been lied to by his...almost-sorta-not-quite boyfriend, he couldn't allow himself to be too terribly upset. After all, he wasn't exactly normal, and still hadn't come forward about it.

"He won't hurt her," Damon spoke softly, his eyes shooting to the still open door.

"I figured as much," Harry removed his hand from Damon's face and took a step back, placing some space between himself and the handsome vampire. "If either of you had wanted to have a Potter smoothie, it would have happened a long time ago."

"I suppose this is the Q and A section of tonights events, then?" Damon gracefully lowered himself onto the couch he'd been on earlier. "You can ask me questions while my brother tries to calm your sister down."

Harry bit his lip in contemplation. He really should go after Elena, but if he left this where it was, would his relationship with Damon ever be the same? Even if he talked to Damon now, would it be alright? His instincts were screaming at him to flee, as he was in a room with a creature that was an _actual_ predator of his kind.

"Either way, you're stuck here until Elena comes back," Damon pointed out with a smirk. "Elena drove."

Harry hung his head in defeat, and made his way over to the couch. He flopped next to Damon in a graceless heap, "Alright then, I suppose."

"You, of course." Damon's ice-blue eyes were focussed on Harry in a way that made him feel as the the entire Universe had melted down to just himself and the man –vampire, Harry mentally corrected- sitting next to him.

"I don't even know where to begin," Harry paused for a second, gathering his thoughts. "The attacks. Did you or Stefan attack all of the people who have been dying recently?"

"No," Damon answered smoothly. It was a truthful answer, from a certain perspective. Damon hadn't attacked _all_ of the people. He'd had a thrall attack Ginny Weasley. "Stefan lives off of animal blood," the vampire continued. "I am more...selective about my meals than to go on a murdering spree."

"How old are you?" Harry asked, shifting into a more comfortable position. He turned so his back was against the armrest, facing Damon, and he pulled his legs onto the couch, knees against his chest.

"I am twenty one years old," Damon answered glibly. "And I have been for one hundred and forty six years."

Harry went a little light headed at the thought. A relationship between a seventeen year old and a twenty one year old would have been scandalous enough. Some quick mental math placed Damon's birthday at sometime in 1843.

"Sweet mother of Jesse McCartney, you're old," Harry exhaled. "I've been dating a 167 year old. Surely that's not legal."

Damon laughed, and the sound warmed Harry through and through. "I think a lot of things concerning my existence are more than a little illegal, Harry."

Harry shook his head, attempting to banish the invasive thoughts regarding the sex drive of one hundred and sixty seven year olds' from his overactive mind.

"So, you're immortal?"

"Mostly," Damon answered, a serious pitch to his baritone voice. "Certain things can kill a vampire for keeps. Fire, wood, decapitation, and sunlight all do a pretty bang up job."

"Sunlight?" Harry was confused by this. "I've seen you and Stefan in the daytime often. How are you immune?"

Damon didn't answer immediately, instead holding up his right hand. On his middle finger was a slate grey band housing a blue gemstone of some sort. On the stone was a crest of some sort, and in the middle of that was a single 'D' written in an archaic script. He lowered his hand back into his lap.

"Lapis lazuli," Damon clarified, speaking of the stone. "When enchanted by a suitable magic user, lapis protects vampires from the damaging properties of sunlight."

"A magic user? Who enchanted yours?" Harry stomped on the tinge of jealousy at the fact that _another_ witch had crafted Damon's ring. It was a ridiculous thing to be envious of. Damon had probably had the ring for most of his 146 years of un-life.

"Actually, an ancestor of your good friend Bonnie's. Her name was Emily Bennett, and she was an exceptionally powerful witch. She made this for me and did me another favor. In return, I promised to keep tabs on her descendants," Damon replied.

"Now, I have a question for you."

The green eyed witch's heart skipped a beat as Damon spoke, all too aware of what the vampire's question was going to be.

"Why are you taking this so well?" Damon asked, arching a black brow at his smaller companion.

"Err...well. Um," Harry stuttered, attempting to find a way to word his answer. "I suppose it's because it would be a little hypocritical of me to be angry at you for hiding that fact that you're a supernatural being when I'm one myself."

"I'm glad you feel like you can trust me with that," Damon replied neutrally.

"Why do I feel like you already knew that?" Harry murmured, eyeing the vampire with suspicion.

"Because I did. We can smell magic; it smells like a lightning storm to us vampires, kind of sweet and a little burnt. With you being as powerful as you are, it was fairly obvious. Especially after your fainting spell the night the Comet passed over the town square."

Harry's mind was swimming because of that he had to take in from the evening's events. He stood up from the couch, "Umm...I'm assuming Elena isn't coming back. I think I'll go now. This is all a lot to deal with at once."

As Harry moved to the front door of the boarding house, Damon vanished from the couch only to appear in front of Harry, blocking the exit. Harry fought against the quick spike of his heart rate, and his breath hitched in his throat.

"Before you go, I think you should have this," Damon murmured. He stepped forward into Harry's personal space, and lifted a small chain around Harry's neck. At the base of the necklace was a small amber jewel set into an iron cast. As it hit his skin, Harry felt a comfortable thrum of power emanate from the talisman, as if it was pleased.

"It was something else Emily made," Damon said by way of explanation. "It should help keep you safe. Stefan and I aren't the only vampires in the world, and the rest of them wouldn't allow such a pretty face to keep them from a meal like I would."

"How is it that you can make me feel good about myself while making me feel like a steak at the same time?" Harry asked, placing a hand on the warm crystal sitting on his chest.

"Come on, I'll take you home. I have some business to attend to afterwards, anyway."

ooo

"The cemetery? Isn't this a little morbid?" Jeremy asked. Ginny was leading him through a small wooded area next to the Mystic Falls Cemetery. He could hear some music playing in the distance, gradually increasing in volume and becoming clearer as the two trekked through the foliage. They were heading for a party hosted by a guy who ran with a...different crowd at school, so Jeremy wasn't worried about running into either of the twins.

"It isn't _technically_ the cemetery," the red-headed girl contended. "Besides, where other than the middle of the woods could host a party this big and not get us arrested? We can't use the Falls anymore, since the police were called at the end of the party at the beginning of the school year."

The music became deafening, and the two teens stepped out into a well lit clearing. A reasonably large number of people were in the clearing, a roaring fire in the center.

"Welcome to my other favorite party place!" Ginny giggled, opening her arms wide. She immediately made for a cheap wooden table, where rows upon rows of red plastic cups containing mystery liquid were sitting. She returned with a cup for the tall male, already having made serious progress on her drink.

He grimaced as he took a sip, "Is this paint stripper?"

Ginny merely shrugged in response, finishing off her cup with only mild disgust. "Does it matter?"

The night passed in a blur of lights and motion for the two, as never ending hunch punch and several other substances worked on the teens. Sometime nearing sunrise, when Ginny and Jeremy were two of the only ones remaining, and the only two conscious at that, Jeremy turned to face the girl in a clumsy manner.

"Was it the drugs? Did you only sleep with me because of the drugs?" He demanded, indignant. He was still buzzed enough to not care about what he asked, but aware enough to realize the importance of her answer.

"You're killing the mood here," Ginny snorted, not taking him seriously.

"Really though, what's going on? What is this? What are _we_?"

"We? There is no 'we.' You're the kid with a big house who's acting out because he's not happy with his loving parents and doting, if obnoxious, siblings. Guess what? You'll get over it. You'll move on, and one day tell you'll tell your kids about your 'dark' phase growing up," Ginny snarled. She turned her head away from him.

"And I'll still be here," her voice lowered to an angry whisper as she continued. "Still here, waiting tables at the Grill and partying at the cemetery with a bunch of 'waste of space' small town lifers."

Jeremy only had time to scowl at her answer, trying to find the proper words to respond with, before the music abruptly cut off. Ginny scowled in the direction of the truck deeper in the woods that had been playing it.

"Go home Jeremy. I'll see you later."

Without waiting for an response, the petite red head was gone. She carefully stepped around tree roots and rocks, suddenly overly aware of the autumn chill. The large black truck was more than a little creepy in the dark, but she fought the urge to turn tail, and clambered into the drivers seat of the vehicle that was still running. She found that the iPod hooked into the radio had merely ran out of songs, and hit the shuffle command before hopping back out of the truck.

As she turned back toward the clearing, her breath caught in her throat as she caught sight of a man standing behind her. He was much taller than her, and had the air of a large feline about him. She found his dark hair oddly familiar, and was somewhat mesmerized by his clear blue eyes.

"You...I know you," she whispered. It was more of a question than a statement. Ginny fought down the abject terror threatening to explode in her chest.

The dark haired man smiled in a way that made her heart clench before he responded. "Well, that's unfortunate."

She turned to run, but he was on her before she could make it even a step further. Her mouth opening into a soundless scream as she felt a tearing pain on her neck. As darkness clawed at her eyes, Ginny Weasley allowed herself to slide into unconsciousness.

ooo

Damon had dropped Harry off at the Black residence as promised, and had brushed a kiss across the distraught teen's eyebrow before driving off.

Harry found himself staring after the car long after it had disappeared over the dark horizon. He finally willed himself into the house with a sigh, and quickly found his sister inundated in her bed, fully submerged in the down sheets.

"Elly?" He whispered. "You awake?"

"No," a particularly large blob under the covers muttered. Harry laughed softly.

"Are you going to lay there forever?" The green eyed boy asked his twin sister.

"Yes," the blob responded.

"Well then, the very least you can do is move over." Harry slid off his flip flops and crawled into the bed, partially atop his sister. "You okay, sweetheart?"

The mass shifted some more, before the covers were lifted and pulled back, revealing Elena's face with puffy, red eyes.

"I'm tired of thinking. Tired of talking," Elena answered, her voice a little hoarse as well.

Harry bit his lip in thought, rolling onto his back and facing the ceiling. He snorted somewhat humorlessly.

"What's so funny?" Elena asked, grabbing one of her twin brother's hands and twining her fingers with it.

"Our lives have become a circus," Harry replied. "We're seventeen year old orphans that have been dating a pair of vampires almost two centuries old. It's like a bad teen drama on television."

Elena couldn't help but smile somewhat self-deprecatingly at that. "It is pretty ridiculous when you think of it like that."

"Elly?" Harry's asked quietly, a nervous quaver to his voice. He was staring steadfastly at the ceiling.

"Hmm?" She ran her thumb across the back of his hand.

The black haired twin kept biting his lip, debating the best way to reveal his powers to his sister. "I suppose now is kind of a bad time. Maybe it's a good time, though."

"I'm pretty sure you can't say anything that would shock me after Stefan's earlier tonight," Elena laughed, a tinge of bitterness to the trilling sound.

"At the very least, this will get all of big surprises out of the way at once," Harry murmured. He finally turned his head to face his twin. "Perhaps it will be better to show you."

Elena's eyes followed his hand as he gestured up at the ceiling. She gasped softly as his eyes began to cast an acidic green glow in the darkness, and as he opened his palm at the roof little lights, like miniature stars, began to fill the room.

"Magic," Harry whispered, a small smile on his face. "I can do magic."

Elena couldn't help but sigh in awe as the little fairy lights kept blinking prettily about her bedroom, some of them changing colors like tiny Christmas lights. She squeezed her twins hand before releasing it and sitting up. She let out a laugh of pure delight as one of the little stars settled in the palm of her upturned hand, warming her to her core.

She turned to face her brother, who was eyeing her warily. "How long have you known about this? What all can you do?"

"Not very long," he murmured, somewhat uncomfortably. "I'm not sure what all I'm capable of at the moment. I don't know if I have a limit or anything. I really just think about what I want to happen, channel some juice into the thought, and make it happen. Most of the impressive things I've done have been accidental, though."

"Why didn't you tell me?" She smiled softly at her brother, a softness in her brown eyes that let him know that his withholding of the info was already forgiven.

"Well, it's not exactly a normal thing to have happen. Except in Mystic Falls, apparently. Besides, you know I'm not good at telling people things like this," Harry answered, smiling as a memory surfaced into his mind.

"Really? I was a pretty big fan of the way you came out," Elena failed at stifling a chuckle at the memory. "Elena, please pass the salt. The turkey's a little bland and I'm gay."

Harry couldn't help but dissolve into laughter at the reminder. "I was thirteen! It sounded like a good idea at the time. Mom and Dad thought it was funny."

Elena joined him in laughter, collapsing next to him on the bed. The two lay there in silence after the laughter died down, watching the twinkling light show, and eventually fell asleep.

ooo

Stefan had tracked his brother down into the forest surrounding the Mystic Falls cemetery. He crept soundlessly through the trees. The sun was just beginning to rise, and was subtly coloring the woods a deep dark blue, revealing a hazy mist settled on the forest floor.

Stefan paused as he heard soft sobbing in the distance, recognizing the sound as female, he rushed in the direction of the noise. The vampire burst through a clearing filled with unconscious teenagers and litter of all sorts. He continued in search of the crying, and eventually came upon the newly undead corpse of Ginny Weasley, seated against a tree trunk crying.

She looked up at Stefan purposely snapped a twig, garnering her attention. Her pupils were hugely dilated in shock, her mind clearly running in overdrive. She recognized him as Damon's brother and sniffled pathetically before speaking.

"He said I have to feed," she whispered shakily. "What happens if I don't?"

Stefan was momentarily staggered by the weight of his infernal brother's actions. "You'll fade. Eventually it'll all just...be over."

The girl couldn't help but sob at that statement. "I don't want to kill anyone, but I don't want to die either."

Stefan cursed Damon under his breath, and took another cautious step towards the girl. Her flaming red hair fell limply in front of her downturned face, and blood smeared her neck and formerly white tank top, though her wound had already healed.

"I guess I have to make a decision, don't I?" Ginny suddenly looked up at the younger Salvatore. "I want to go home. Will you take me home?"

Stefan briefly studied the small girl before nodding, reaching down to help her up. Since she was still in limbo, her mind couldn't process her bodies' new abilities, and her coordination was very poor. He wrapped an arm under hers and held most of her weight as the two made towards the clearing.

ooo

Harry awakened suddenly and wholly. His heart was pounding frightfully harshly in his chest, and he was hyperaware of an inordinate sense of danger. He looked at the clock, and noticing that it wasn't even five in the morning yet, slid out of his sister's bed without awakening her.

He ventured into the dark hallway, and tiptoed down the stairs towards the front door. Harry wasn't sure exactly what was bothering him so deeply, but after the events of the last few months, was more than a little unwilling to ignore the consuming feeling. His hair was standing on end, and he felt his magic swirling about impatiently, almost champing at the bit.

He looked through the blinds and saw Jeremy pacing on the walkway to the door, clearly a little inebriated. With a soft sigh, Harry moved to the door and opened it. His brother blinked rapidly at the green-eyed teen's unexpected appearance.

"Are you going to come in?" Harry raised a jet black brow at the taller of the two. All he received in response was a strangled noise as Jeremy turned away from him towards the road. Harry closed the door behind him and ambled up the stone path until he stood next to his brother.

"Jeremy?" Harry was concerned. "What's going on?"

"Ginny," Jeremy groaned, turning back around. "I think I screwed things up. She's at the cemetery by herself. I left her. She asked me to, but I shouldn't have left her."

"Jer, you're rambling." Harry wrapped a slender hand around his brothers' wrist. "Ginny's still at the cemetery?"

"Yeah," replied the younger.

"Okay, you go to bed before Remus finds out you weren't home and murders you, and I'll get Damon and Stefan. We'll find her and make sure she gets back to Ron safely, yeah?" Harry kept his voice as placating as possible, though the thought of Ginny being alone in a cemetery in the supernatural hotbed Harry now knew Mystic Falls to be was a little disconcerting.

The witch didn't wait for a response before turning his younger sibling toward the house and nudging him.

"Don't worry," Harry's voice was soothing. "I'll take care of everything."

Harry stayed long enough to make sure Jeremy got inside the house safely before deciding to try something new. He closed his eyes and gathered as much power as he could before picturing the boarding house and willing his magic to take him there.

With a slight pop, Harry vanished from the front of the Black household.

ooo

Miles away, a different figure was making his way through the Mystic Falls Cemetery. He was following the needle of a rather unassuming compass in his hand. As soon as it had latched onto something, he had sent a missive to the Sheriff of the town and waded into the cemetery, intent on catching the creature.

He moved as quietly as possible, though quickly enough to hopefully catch his prey.

Black cloak billowing behind him like a storm cloud, the man couldn't help but sneer as he caught sight of what was surely his target loping between the headstones, half-carrying a girl.

Ignorant of the man on his tail, Stefan continued unwaveringly through the graveyard. Ginny had maintained consciousness, though her strength was still too much for her mostly human mind to make sense of, and Stefan was still mostly toting her.

A sudden change in the wind brought a new scent to Stefan's nose, and the fragrance was vaguely familiar to him. Heavily laced with an herbaceous smell, a somewhat chemical tinge, and a familiar underlying electric current, Stefan recognized the scent as a human's, though he didn't know whose.

As soon as he did, though, gunshots rang out across the clearing. Stefan used his vampiric speed to dodge the bullets and place Ginny behind a headstone for safety before ducking out into the open and trying to locate their assailant.

He wasn't very hard to find, as it turned out. It was kind of hard to miss a vaguely bat-like cloaked figure shooting as morning light began to stream into the cemetery. Stefan mentally cursed, aware that Ginny was fully weak to the morning sun. He needed to end this quickly before the light reached them.

"Who are you!" Stefan kept eluding the steady stream of gunfire, shuffling from headstone to headstone. Receiving no answer, the vampire charged the man at a speed that no human should have been able to even detect.

The vampire found himself in a rather unsatisfactory situation, though, as as sweep of the man's enrobed arm left him immobile and fully vulnerable. Stefan, too late, realized that the overly sweet ozone undercurrent in the man's scent was the same as Harry's.

Magic.

"Fool," the cloaked figure hissed. "You think that you're the top of the food chain? You're pathetic. You leeches will be gone from this town soon enough."

Stefan attempted to speak to the man, but found himself very much unable to respond to the magic chokehold on his body. The cloaked figure raised the gun again, and fired off three shots into Stefan, hitting his shoulder.

The vampire let out an agonized scream as the bullets made contact. No ordinary metal bullets, these were made from wood, one of the few materials that legitimately harmed a vampire. Quite incapacitated by the pain, Stefan fell to the ground as the man released the spell holding him up.

The man in the black robes approached Stefan slowly, only his shoes visible to the vampire on his hands and knees. The witch pulled a wooden stake from his robes and fisted it in his hand.

"And now," his voice dripped contempt. "You die."

He kicked Stefan, knocking him over onto his back, and raised the stake. Before he could plunge it into Stefan's heart though, he cried out a large blur tackled the witch. The blur turned out to be Damon, who mercilessly slammed his first into the man's jaw, no doubt breaking it and knocking the man out.

Damon stood from his position on the now un-hooded man. He noticed a compass sitting next to the man, fixedly pointing in Damon's direction, which was not north. He pocketed it before snarling viciously at the soon-to-be corpse. He then stalked over to his immobilized brother, calling out to Ginny and commanding her to take the man's black robes and cover herself from the approaching sunlight.

"Damon?" Stefan asked weakly, ineffectually clawing at his shoulder.

"If anyone's gonna kill you, it's gonna be me," Damon growled out in response, kneeling over the younger Salvatore. "This is gonna hurt."

Before Stefan could formulate a reply, Damon had reached down and brutally yanked the first bullet from Stefan's shoulder. While Stefan howled out in pain, Damon made quick work of the second and third wooden bullet as well. He waited by his brother until the younger was well enough to stand on his own again.

The two rose from the ground and turned to find Ginny wiping more blood from her mouth. Blood belonging to the man lying on the ground beside her.

"Ginny!" Stefan cried out. "Do you have any idea what you've just done?"

The newly enshrouded girl answered, "The hunger was too much, and he smelled _so _good! I didn't want to die."

"Welcome to the afterlife, kid," Damon said. "Now, as much as I'd like to stick around for Professor Stefan's painful lecture on morality and things you should've learned on _Arthur_, I'm gonna go home. Preferably before someone finds the—wait, where's the body?"

Ginny and Stefan looked down to where the newly drained corpse had been, and found nothing there but a small pool of blood on the ground.

"Maybe getting home is the best idea in this situation," Stefan agreed, not taking his eyes away from where the witch's body had been.

Ginny nodded shakily, and the three vampires made their way back to the boarding house.

ooo

Harry mentally agreed with himself to _never_ attempt that method of travel again. He fell flat on his ass on the front porch of the boarding house, nauseated and trying to quell the feeling that his brain was running out of his nose. As his sickness began to subside, he noticed that the feeling of sheer wrongness that had woken him up was not dying down at all. In fact, it was worsening exponentially.

He grasped at the amber crystal on the necklace Damon had given him, taking comfort in the warmth of Emily Bennett's power. He sat on the porch steps as the sun rose, having realized that neither vampire was in after extending some energy through the household and not sensing either of them. The boarding house was located closer to the Falls than the city itself, and was somewhat secluded in the pine trees so common in Mystic Falls. The sunlight filtered through the trees, bathing the sky in a dark blue that eventually lightened to pink as time passed.

Nearly an hour after his arrival, as Harry rose to search for Ginny himself, tired of waiting on the brothers, he noticed three shadows emerging from the treeline. Harry slowly walked down the driveway, his stride lengthening as two of the forms became clear as Damon and Stefan. The third person was considerably shorter than the brothers, and was covered from head to toe an a large black robe, causing Harry to frown in confusion.

Harry's steps faltered as he noticed the large splashes of blood staining the younger Salvatore's shirt. The furrow in his brow switched from confusion to concern as the three closed the distance between themselves and Harry.

"Stefan?" Harry asked tentatively, eyeing the holes in the vampire's shirt and the still un-healed wounds on his skin.

"Don't worry," Stefan cut his train of thought off. "I'm fine. It's healing slowly because I haven't fed recently. If you'll excuse me."

Stefan continued into the house, waiting on the diminutive stranger in the hood to follow him. Harry focussed his attention more fully on Damon at this point, noticing discomfort in the vampire's normally unreadable eyes.

"What's going on?" Harry attempted to remain calm, his magic wildly reacting to the stresses of the night and the feeling that something terrible had just occurred. "Who was that? I wasn't aware that the whole 'immortal' deal also came along with a free house call from the Grim Reaper."

"Put the claws away, kitten," Damon smiled softly. "Why are you over here?"

"I don't appreciate you dodging the question, Damon," Harry hissed. "I'm here because my stupid brother left his drunk fuck buddy alone in the woods, and I promised I'd find her. I was here to see if you'd help me out."

"You're in luck then," Damon's face adopted a rather grim expression. "The girl in the cloak was, in fact, Ginny Weasley. She'd been attacked in the woods surrounding the cemetery. I turned her."

Harry was gobsmacked, "You _what!_"

"She's a vampire now. She would've died otherwise," Damon answered calmly. "She'll thank me one day."

"Like you thank whoever turned you?" Harry was beside himself. "What are we supposed to tell everyone else? 'No, you don't have to search for her, she's fine, she just came down with a little case of dead!'"

"No one else has to know," Damon's response was smooth, and he placed a hand on Harry's arm in what was supposed to be a comforting gesture.

"I can't lie to Jeremy or Ron about this," Harry shook his head slowly, eyes closed. He was more than slightly horrified at Damon's suggestion. This was his brother and one of his oldest friends they were talking about, and they both loved Ginny.

"She would've died if I hadn't turned her," Damon gently reminded the boy.

Harry frowned, opened his eyes, and shrugged the taller male's hand off of his arm. He stepped back from the vampire and began shaking his head.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I know you won't hurt me, and I know you only did what you thought was best. I don't think I can do this, though."

"What are you saying?" Damon asked lowly, his voice taking a grave tone.

"I don't know if I can be with you, Damon."

With that, Harry Potter closed his eyes and disappeared from the driveway of the Salvatore Boarding House, leaving Damon shellshocked.

Ice blue eyes narrowed in fury.

He would _not _allow his plans to be ruined this late in the game.

ooo

A/n: This is the fastest update you will ever receive, lol. The next chapter may come out quickly, but don't expect it in three days or less. I'm just really stoked about this chapter and the next one, and I really loved the last chapter too. Also, the feedback on the last chapter **really** helped me churn this one out, so keep that up!

A few quick things:

-To everyone who mentioned Hermione's sucky personality and characterization: I wholeheartedly agree, but keep in mind that part of what made Caroline so kickass was dealing with Damon's mistreatment of her in Season 1, which I have eliminated. Don't worry though, this story is just beginning, and her character will be much better developed because of her going through the ringer in some upcoming chapters. Hermione is my favorite character in the HP books, so you can expect the real Hermione to shine through eventually.

-I muddled up the Compass and the Pocketwatch Device in my notes, so now the Compass is actually a compass and the watch is now the Device. Sorry if that confuses anyone really familiar with VD canon. My bad.

-And lastly, if anyone is irritated with the phrase "Man in the cloak" or various synonyms...so am I. The thesaurus app on my phone now hates me, but no worries. Our mystery man will be unveiled soon.

Review, please!


	8. VIII

Disclaimer: I don't own either Harry Potter or The Vampire Diaries. Unfortunate.

**VIII**

"_We march all around 'til the sun goes down, night children,_

_Night children in a round, broken dreams, no sunshine, endless crimes,_

_We long for freedom, for freedom._

_You're free, but in your mind: Your freedom's in a bind."_

_-Many Moons, Janelle Monáe_

ooo

If there was one feeling that Ginny Weasley was familiar with, it was the sensation of being trapped. Trapped with a shitty mother, trapped in a nowhere suburb, trapped in a relationship with a boy that would never have any feelings for her, trapped in a meaningless existence with no hope of getting out.

Now, though?

Ginny had the ability to change all of those things. She was a vampire. The power coursing through her musculature was immense. Her entire body was a weapon. A beautiful superhuman creature with all of eternity to become whoever and whatever she wanted.

Untouched, unadulterated pleasure thrummed through the redhead as her pale skin flushed a pretty compliment to her fiery hair. She was flawless, strong, and _hungry._

A giggle rose up from her throat and erupted into the room, increasing in volume as it became peals of full-out laughter. She rose from the chair she'd taken residence on, and sashayed over to Stefan's window, treated against the harmful UV rays. Her laughter bordered on manic as the ginger girl realized she could clearly see insects buzzing around the yard in the sunlight, all the way down to the filaments in their wings.

"Well, if you're practicing the evil laugh, I think you've got it down." Damon sauntered into the room, mildly disturbed by the girls' laughter...and that was saying something, given his sociopathic tendencies.

Ginny's laughter diminished into a soft giggle, "Sorry. I'm just a little taken with myself at the moment."

Nostalgia painted Damon's tone, "Ah, to be a newborn again. Were we ever this sickening?" He turned to the doorway, where Stefan appeared with a glass in his hand.

"No. I was too busy mourning my dead girlfriend. You were too busy hating my guts," Stefan replied with no inflection in his voice.

Ginny, in the meantime, had zoned out at Stefan's appearance, smelling the air before zeroing in on the cup in Stefan's hand. "What is that?"

"It's what you want," Stefan answered simply.

"Don't lie to the girl. That is _so_ not what you're craving, but it'll do in a pinch." The elder Salvatore cut his eyes at his younger brother.

Stefan ambled over to Ginny, handing her the blood-filled glass. "Drink. It'll help lessen the craving."

"Yeah? What is it? Is it skunk? St. Bernard? Bambi?" Damon's lips turned up into a mocking smile.

"It's animal blood?" Ginny asked, lowering the glass she'd been drinking ravenously from, her lower lip stained deep red. "Why can't I have people blood?"

"You can't just drink a little from a human," Stefan answered. "Once you start, you'll kill them. You know. Murder, homicide, slaughter, all that."

"Yeah, the good things in life," Damon cut in. "Don't listen to him. He walks on a moral plane _way_ out of our eye level. I say this: eat, snatch, and erase."

Ginny nodded thoughtfully, taking in the new information while tuning the now arguing brothers out. Could she really kill a person? Destroy someone's entire life just for the betterment of hers? It was something to think about.

"Anyway, I have some business to take care of. I'll be back later." Damon announced, waving jauntily at the other two vampires. He made a quick exit, before Stefan could continue his righteous verbal-crusade on the older vampire's evil ways.

Stefan glared at the doorway, while Ginny re-took her seat, her eyes unfocused as she thought through her own morality.

ooo

Harry stood in the kitchen of the Black household, stirring a cup of coffee rather intensely, angry eyebrows firmly in place. The other occupants of the kitchen, his twin sister and adoptive brother, were keeping a wary distance from the green eyed teen. A single jet brow twitched as the witch placed the spoon on the countertop with a loud metallic clang.

"You don't have to stare at me like I'm dynamite. I'm upset and tired, yes, but I'm not about to start screaming or anything. I just want to get through the school day as uneventfully as possible, and then go back to bed." Harry stalked over to the table, crossing his legs and glaring harshly through the kitchen window as he sat down.

The three teens painted a pretty picture sitting at the table. Harry was a ball of agitation, sipping at his coffee and sending a scathing glare off into the distance as he felt his soul slip into the massive purple bags under eyes eyes. Elena was listlessly reading a magazine. Her brown hair was piled onto her head in an uncharacteristically messy up-do, and she was wearing a massive hoodie. Jeremy was overly antsy and mildly hung over from the previous night. His constant fidgeting and movements were proving to be a major source of irritation for the sour-faced Harry, sitting opposite his brother.

"Would you stop that?" Harry spat, having finally reached the breaking point as Jeremy reached up to scratch his hair for the six billionth time. Elena rolled her eyes as she turned a page, still not reading the magazine.

"I can't help it," Jeremy argued. "I don't understand how you're staying so fucking calm when Ginny is out there-"

"Would you stuff it, you big ol' queen?" Harry cut his younger brother off. "Ginny's fine. Damon and Stefan found her. She's at the boarding house, probably sleeping off a hangover the size of Vermont."

"Oh," Jeremy paused. "You could have just told me that when you got in here. You know...been a nice brother and stuff..."

"I am running on two hours of sleep, and spent the hours of four through six this morning out in the cold, in the woods, looking for a girl who isn't even your girlfriend, because she decided to go on a bender and you left her in the forest," Harry's eyes were throwing hate-knives at Jeremy as his voice took on a decidedly vicious tone. "I'm not feeling particularly generous."

"Don't forget the part where you dumped Damon," Elena sighed. She dropped the magazine and began staring into a glass of orange juice as if it held the answers to all of her questions.

"Thank you, sister," Harry grated out. He turned back to Jeremy, "Also: I dumped Damon."

"Wow. That sucks."

Harry's glare doubled in strength as he turned back to the window. Out in the back yard, an entire family of lawn gnomes fell into mourning as the smallest of the lot burst into flames.

ooo

Damon grabbed his leather jacket on his way out of the house. Halloween was quickly approaching, and the chill of late autumn was beginning to kick in, a harbinger of winter's icy grasp. He paused as he reached for the doorknob, smelling Harry on the other side of the door. Vanilla and a small burst of something citrusy. Sweet, fragrant, and uniquely Harry. Damon stomped on the part of himself that was so pleased at Harry's appearance, no doubt here to rectify their relationship status.

He opened the door, momentarily stunning the petite human, who had a fist raised to knock on the door. Damon turned up his charm to maximum panty-dropping levels as those bright green eyes narrowed from surprise to irritation.

"How's Ginny?" Harry was clearly still vexed with the vampire. He pushed his way past Damon into the living room, crossing his arms over his thin chest in a mildly childish manner before fixing the vampire with a haughty glare.

Damon was incensed at the boy's inability to give in to Damon's wiles. His inner beast was distinctly pleased by the little human's stubbornness.

"Good morning to you, too, little miss 'I'm on a mission.'"

Harry's glare reached melt-your-face-off grade, "How can you be so arrogant and glib after all that's happened?"

"And how can you be so brave to call a vampire 'arrogant and glib?'" Damon was on the boy in a second. His arm was wrapped around Harry's waist, while his other hand found it's way into the human's wild black hair, pulling his head to the side and baring the boy's elegant neck.

Harry tensed, both terrified and terribly aroused by the vampire's breath on his jugular vein. He fought back the urge to moan as Damon nuzzled him. As he melted into Damon's grip, he became aware of a distinct tightening in his pants. "If you wanted me dead, I'd already be dead."

"Yes, you would," Damon murmured into Harry's throat. Hot, sinful smelling blood was racing through the veins currently exposed to the vampire. He was somewhat taken aback by the intensity of his need to take the boy currently trembling his arms. The monster within him was practically roaring it's need to ravage the teen. Mark him, claim him, turn him, and make him Damon's for eternity.

"But I'm not," Harry was breathless. His magic was all but singing out into the room, far too happy with the vampire's proximity.

"Yet," the vampire whispered, voice much deeper and huskier than normal. He stepped back from Harry, releasing the teen, whose knees nearly buckled without the vampire there to support his weight. "Have you made a decision?"

"About what?" Harry was clearly still disoriented.

"This. Us. My being a dead creature of the night and your ability to date me."

Harry exhaled slowly, trying to calm himself as he pondered the vampire's question. "Your vampirism isn't the problem. I just need some time to think about a few things before I agree to let this...thing between us go any further."

Damon nodded his assent, "Well then, if you'll excuse me, I have some business in town to take care of. Stefan will be down in a second, you can talk to him about Ginny."

Before Harry could register the vampire's sentence, Damon was out of the door and halfway down the sidewalk. A quick burst of vampiric strength had him about halfway into town. He was visibly shaken by his encounter with Harry.

The vampire normally prided himself on his clear, concise, completely focused -if a little obsessive- thought processes, but Harry Potter had managed to make Damon's mind frazzled and pull him in ten different directions.

He stalked through the backwoods towards the town and eventually the town square, dark hair fluttering about due to his frenetic pace and a slight breeze. It was a beautiful autumn day, and the sun highlighted Damon's white-marble skin and eyes now the color of a stormy sea.

It was supposed to have been simple, Damon scowled. Find the boy. Seduce the boy. Have the boy open the tomb. Live happily ever after with Katherine, having lots of glorious vampire sex and making his brother absolutely miserable.

That shit was flawless.

Unfortunately, The Plan -Damon had taken to thinking of it in capital letters- was dissolving before his gorgeous eyes. He now found himself with an insufferably willful little witch who had _morals_.

Ick.

Worst of all, his vampiric instincts actually _liked_ the boy. Hell, if Damon was going to be completely honest, he kind of liked the boy as well. Harry was indeed sexy, and he was totally sweet and malleable, except for a surprising amount of fire when pushed. The Salvatore's eyes darkened further as he contemplated his options.

No, he decided, The Plan would continue. He'd come too far to stop now. Maybe, just maybe, though, he could spend some time having glorious magical sex with Harry before gallivanting off into eternity with Katherine in tow. It might help get these pesky _feelings_ out of his system.

His trademark smirk began to form. Damon was beginning to like this variation of the plan much more than the original one. He just had to spin things around so that he came out looking just as much the victim as everyone else. It would be easy.

And after all, who was a better manipulator than Damon Salvatore?

ooo

Nearly forgetting to even breathe, Harry was sure he'd been turned into a statue for a few minutes. His magic was nearly purring, filling the room almost tangibly. Damon's overt seduction and quick departure had left Harry feeling somewhat like what he was convinced the Normandy beach felt like on D-Day.

Except he was pretty sure the Normandy beach hadn't sported an absolutely furious erection.

Harry blushed at his own train of thought. He walked somewhat dazedly over to the couch before falling onto it gracelessly, calling up to Stefan once he was suitably calm. The younger Salvatore brother appeared at the bottom of the steps, nodding his head in a silent greeting.

"Hi, there, Stef," Harry greeted, smiling amiably. "How's Ginny doing?"

Stefan frowned lightly at the girls' name. He sat across from Harry gingerly, ready to move quickly in case Ginny appeared.

"She's as well as can be expected. I'm working with her, but it will take time. She has a very volatile and impulsive personality. Also, her drug use will play a part in forming her new personality."

"So...she's a vampire with issues?"

Stefan chuckled, the uncharacteristic sound bringing a bright grin to Harry's face. "I would say so. She'll be fine, eventually. It's hard at first. All of your emotions: love, lust, anger, sadness, they all blend into one urge. Hunger."

"What about you and Elena?" Harry was reluctant to ask, wary of spoiling the vampire's good mood. Stefan's face did fall, but not very much.

"I think we'll be fine eventually, also. She just needs some time to wrap her mind around everything. Finding out that your boyfriend is an undead blood-sucker, and your brother can pretty much do anything he wants to with a single thought? It's a little shocking."

"Yeah, about that," Harry muttered, flushing wryly. "Sorry for jumping on the bandwagon. I figured it would be easier to tell her I'm a witch when she'd just found out you're a creature that lives on the life force of other people. Good for me, bad for you."

"You're a witch!"

Harry and Stefan's faces both shot towards the staircase, where Ginny Weasley was standing in shock. Her skin had taken on a silky sheen it had never had in life, and all of her freckles and various imperfections were gone. Her brown eyes were as lifeless as always, though now in a much creepier way, if at all possible. The previous carrot-orange hair cascading down her back was now the color of autumn leaves, a riot of reds, golds, and brilliant oranges. Harry was more than slightly stunned by the change in appearance, but, he supposed, it shouldn't have been that surprising.

"Hello, Ginny," he greeted once he had recovered his equilibrium. "How are you?"

The newborn vampire took on a decidedly unimpressed expression, "How am I? Are you fucking kidding? I'm dead! Un...dead. Not alive. Whatever."

"I knew that, how are you adjusting to your new...unlife?"

"It's not that bad. It's not that great either. I feel odd," she turned to Stefan. "Does this sketchy feeling ever go away? It's like I have a massive hangover. This daylight thing is a bitch. I'm fucking _hungry_. And I have to pee. Why do I have to pee? I thought I was dead. Where's the bathroom?"

Harry's mind checked out halfway through the rapid-fire questions. He sat there dumbly while Stefan calmly explained to Ginny that the weirdness would go away with time, and that the bathroom was the first door on the left up the stairs. Stefan stood up and turned back to Harry as the redhead made her way back up the stairs, no doubt to find the bathroom.

"I'm going to get some more blood for her. I'll hurry back."

Harry nodded his assent, "I'll be here. I need to ask Damon a question when he gets back from whatever errand he's on."

The green eyed vampire faltered slightly at the mention of his brother's name. He placed a hand on Harry's shoulder in an attempt at comfort, earning him a soft smile. Harry could feel the warmth bubbling up at Stefan's concern. The eternal teenager squeezed lightly before letting go and leaving the boarding house.

The small teen moved from the couch, exploring a massive bookshelf adjacent to the furniture. A soft sigh escaped his lips, more than a little disheartened. He ran his fingers down the grainy spines, inhaling the comforting smell of the old tomes.

He liked Damon Salvatore. Probably more than smart, Harry decided. However much he liked the undead man, he still didn't _know_ Damon Salvatore. Harry knew next to nothing that wasn't superficial about Damon. Harry even had the sneaking suspicion that Damon was keeping everything between them so one-sided because he really didn't want Harry to know much about him. Adding the fact that Damon clearly drank human blood, abstaining from Stefan's creature diet, and the very vague matter of Ginny's transformation, and it was enough to make Harry want to wash his hands of the whole situation.

He stopped as he came across a picture, jammed into between two books. He pulled it out and gasped as it came into view. It was an old photograph taken on the front porch of the boarding house. It showed Damon and Stefan, identical to their current appearances, though clothed a little differently, and a woman bearing a startling resemblance to his sister. She was wearing an elegant gown, very reminiscent of Scarlett O'Hara. This must be Katherine, Harry thought.

"What's eating you?" Harry nearly jumped out of his skin at Ginny's question, completely surprised by the vampire's reappearance. She adopted a rather mean smile at his reaction.

"Nothing," bright green eyes looked the vampire up and down before returning the photo to its hiding place. He then viewed Ginny appraisingly. "Ginny, what are you planning on doing about Jeremy now?"

The redhead's face soured immediately. She began making her way towards Harry, a hard glint in her brown eyes. "Nothing. I don't see why anything should change. It's not like we're in a serious relationship. He's a little kid with a crush, and he's useful on occasion."

Harry frowned intensely at the newborn, "Ginny, something has to change. You're not exactly human anymore."

"Neither are you," the vampire smirked nastily at Harry's flinch.

"Break up with him. You're not interested in him, and he really likes you. You can't keep leading him on like this, especially now that he's practically a Happy Meal to you."

Ginny had closed the distance between herself and the human while he was talking, and she now sneered at him from a few feet away.

The black haired boy continued, "Also, all of your drug shit is starting to take over his life. Are the two of you ever _not _high?"

"Sometimes. Usually when we're having sex."

Harry faux-retched, his face contorted into an overly disgusted expression. "Sick. Older brother, remember?"

"Exactly how long have you been planning this 'you're-not-good-enough' speech? I'm assuming it predates the whole 'vampire' thing."

"All I'm saying is that Jeremy is not getting involved in any of this. I mean it, Ginny."

The vampire was on Harry in a flash, wrapping her cold hand around his throat and lifting him off of the ground. Her skin washed out even more than it had been before, causing her flaming red hair to stand out even more. Small blue veins erupted below her brown eyes, and her fangs extended as she hissed at the teen in her grip. Harry struggled and thrashed about vainly, his strength no match for the girl's crushing grip on his windpipe.

"Let's get one thing straight, you perky little bitch. I will see Jeremy if ever and whenever I feel like it. I have some fun new toys to play with, and I won't think twice about ripping your pretty little head off. So quit it with those judge-y little eyes before I tear them out and put them on the mantle!"

Harry grunted, his eyes flashing an electric green as he flung the vampire away, slamming her into a curio cabinet on the opposite end of the room. Glass, wood, and other debris flew about the room as the cabinet practically exploded from the force of Ginny's impact. Harry's eyes were still glowing as the dust began to clear, Ginny held up against the newly cracked wall by Harry's powers.

The witch's voice was a deep rasp, bruises already forming on his throat. "No, let's get one thing straight, you obnoxious cunt. You _will _leave my brother the fuck alone, and you will be a good little vampire and do exactly as Stefan tells you to, because you do not want to fuck with me!"

Harry's magic was nearly volcanic, exerting a crushing amount of pressure on the vampire. Her eyes were dinner plate sized as the small teen stalked closer to her, his black hair fluttering in nonexistent wind. She shuddered as another wave of power hit her like a hammer. When Harry had claimed to be a witch earlier, Ginny had things like opening locks or changing someone's hair color, not the sheer wild power of the avenging angel that was drawing closer to her.

"You may be all dead and strong now, but you have nothing on me honey. You know what kills vampires? Fire. You know what the witch training me specializes in?" Harry's voice was maniacal, watching the fear build in Ginny's eyes.

The amount of pure energy flowing through his veins was intoxicating, and using it was almost a spiritual experience to the boy. It begged him for use, and even this wasn't enough for his gift. An otherworldly voice was singing to him, begging the teen to just let go and wreak vengeance on Ginny for threatening him. Bathe her in fire for daring to insult him, bathe the whole town in fire for daring to underestimate his power.

"Harry!" Ginny shrieked, suitably terrified as things began to explode around the room. The red-haired vampire was quickly coming to the conclusion that Harry wasn't quite in control at the moment, and was desperately trying to snap him out of it. A searingly bright yellow-gold light was growing brighter under Harry's shirt, shining directly on the vampire.

"**HARRY!**"

Ginny hit the ground with a soft grunt as a chandelier fell onto the living room floor with massive crash. She looked at Harry, whose eyes were back to their normal color. He was looking about the now devastated room in a daze, panting for air. The light emerging from under his clothing was gone, and he looked like a lost puppy. Harry fell to the ground in front of her, tucking his legs underneath him and sitting pensively.

"Harry? Ginny?"

The two looked to the door to see Stefan standing there, a deer slung over his shoulder. His green eyes were wide as he surveyed the living room, which was now in shambles. He turned to the two with an incredulous stare.

"Umm...welcome home!" Harry smiled weakly, waving at Stefan. Ginny snorted in amusement, now severely doubting the human boy's sanity.

ooo

The Mystic Grill was more subdued than usual, probably because of the early hour and the fact that most of the teen population of the city was currently in school. The lack of customers made the Grill the perfect place for a meeting between two of the council members. A meeting that Damon Salvatore made sure he was sitting in the room for.

Sirius Black and Jane Granger were seated at a table towards the back of the room, looking to all the world like a pair of old friends catching up over coffee. Their actual topic of discussion, however, was a little more clandestine than merely playing catch up.

"The Compass is now gone," Jane's expression was grim.

"Really? I thought His Holy Jackass-ness was in charge of the Compass," Sirius raised a black brow at the woman, fully unimpressed by the loss of the relic.

"He was. Apparently he was using it to track down one of the vampires when he was attacked. He barely managed to escape with his life."

"Fuck," Sirius breathed, taking a sip of his latte. "Is he alright?"

"He's recovering. The loss of the Compass added to Zach falling down the stairs in the boarding house and breaking his neck don't bode well for us. We now have no way of easily finding the vampires, and no vervain supply either."

"I'm sure Carol will find some way of coming up with more vervain. Zach's supply should still be in the house, we just need to grab it and find someplace else dank and dungeon-esque to grow the plants in."

"Yes, I'll talk to her about it at the Halloween party later this week. It going to be at the haunted house they've built at the Falls. I'm sure she'll be there stalking her demon child, and I'll be there to bust some of the troublemakers for underage drinking and the rest."

"Why do the high schoolers have all of their parties in the same place?" Sirius grinned, fondly remembering his days in high school. "When we were in school, we were a lot more creative with our shenanigans."

Jane laughed aloud, "Creative isn't quite the word I would use. You, James, and Remus were absolute terrors."

"Tell me how things go with Carol next week. Remus and I are going out of town Friday, we won't be back until Sunday. Look after our kids at the party?"

Jane nodded in agreement, moving to gather her things together.

Damon took in the information at lightning speed. At first, his decision to kill Zach had seemed somewhat detrimental to his plans. Now, however, it presented a perfect opportunity to get in good with the Founders Council. He would simply find the Lockwood trophy wife at the Halloween party and offer to take up Zach's position as the vervain supplier to the city. He could then determine exactly how many citizens of the city were ingesting the vervain or owned a piece of jewelry infused with the herb, rendering them immune to his compulsion and making their blood poisonous.

"Alright, I need to head in to the office," Jane stood up, offering Sirius a warm smile.

The regal man stood as well, moving to walk the woman out of the restaurant.

"Keep me updated on Severus' condition, yeah?"

ooo

Harry smiled as he took in the reflection staring back at him in the mirror. Long, striped socks were tucked into his black boots. He was also wearing a deeply cut black v-neck and a pair of black shorts with a black cloak over the rest of his clothing. With a smirk, he finished up his costume with a large black witch's hat placed jauntily on his messy black hair.

He had decided against speaking to Damon after demolishing the living room of the boarding house. The unanswered questions revolving around the sexy vampire were burning holes into his brain, however. Harry knew he would have to confront Damon sooner or later, he was just leaning more towards later.

"I see what you did there," Elena giggled as she opened the door. Harry beamed at his twin sister, the epitome of classy slut in a sexy nurse costume, her brown hair straightened to a beautifully silky sheen.

"I thought it would be appropriate. Is Jeremy ready?"

"He already left, I think. You sure you're good to go? You've been pretty out of it this whole week." Elena's natural facial expression around her twin seemed to be concern, he noted dimly.

"Absolutely. I'm not going to miss what's sure to be the party of the year. I'm going to drink until my liver screams, and have Bonnie give me a piggyback ride all the way home since you'll be off making out with Stefan," Harry ducked as Elena took a swipe at him, cackling all the while.

"Come on, you ass. Let's get to the Falls already."

By the time the twins arrived, the party was already in full swing. A haunted house had been constructed out of the campsite, with screams and riotously loud chainsaws filling up the entirety of the area. Christmas lights, the white variation, had been strung up through most of the trees, illuminating the woods with a soft glow.

Stefan was awaiting the twins as they parked, having been on the phone with Elena for most of the short drive over. Harry giggled as the vampire and his sister danced around each other, happy that at least their relationship was going well at the moment. He left the two of them, smiling as he maneuvered through the crowd of costumed teenagers, most of them already buzzed. He was looking for Bonnie, who'd texted him earlier that night with her costume plans. He chuckled as she came into sight, and made a beeline for his best friend.

She was also dressed as a witch, though her outfit was a little more risque than Harry's, a little black dress, shredded at the hem, unbearably cute black heels, and a huge amount of cleavage. She was talking to a Frankenstein that Harry had no doubt was Ron Weasley. The greenish face paint was a good touch, but his orange hair was a dead giveaway.

"Hey, guys!" Harry chirped, wrapping his arms around Bonnie's neck and beaming up at Ron. The two returned his greeting, making small talk about the various costumes until Harry felt a presence behind him. As he turned, he was greeted by Damon Salvatore, standing there in all of his dark glory. Dressed in the usual black jacket and dark wash jeans, Harry raised his eyebrow at the vampire.

"Where exactly is your costume, sir?"

Damon grinned rakishly, revealing a set of long, pointed canines. His fangs, Harry smiled wryly. "I'm a vampire, can't you tell?"

"Brilliant costume," Harry's deadpanned.

"Yours is pretty nifty as well," Damon pointed out, looking up and down the boy like a particularly tasty steak. His eyes lingered on Harry's slender torso, mostly revealed by the thin black shirt.

The two then noticed Ron looking about mildly frenetically. His already freakish height was being maximized as he craned his neck to try to see his sister's conspicuous hair.

"What's wrong?" Bonnie questioned.

"I can't see Ginny anywhere. She better not bail on me and go on a two day booze and drug binge again. Is this what I have to look forward to? A lifetime of worrying about her?" Ron's face was twisted into a deep scowl.

"I haven't seen your brother, either," Damon muttered to Harry was Bonnie was placating Ron. Harry didn't need Damon to connect the dots. Remembering Stefan's earlier statement about newborn's emotions blending into hunger, Harry quickly realized that Jeremy and Ginny being alone somewhere was a recipe for disaster.

"You're a good brother," Harry told Ron. "Damon and I will go look for her. I'll also text Elena and tell her and Stefan to keep a look out."

"Thank you, Harry. You can't miss her. She's a vampire."

Harry's nose flared as he turned to Damon with a disgruntled expression painted on his face. "I am so over you undead terrors and your uncreative costuming."

"Kettle, did you just call me black?" Damon quipped, looking undisturbed as Harry kicked him in the shin.

Harry pulled his phone out from a pocket sewn into his cloak. He sent Elena a quick text informing her of Ginny and Jeremy's absence from the main party and telling her that he and Damon were going to check out the woods around the campsite. He received a reply from her a second later, saying that she and Stefan were going to check out the woods and the parking lot.

"Stefan and Elena are going to look around, too." Harry told the taller vampire following him towards the tree line, away from the partygoers. "There are too many fucking trees in this city. It's too hard to find people."

"Maybe you need to mojo yourself some jewelry or something that'll let you find your friends easier," Damon offered, trying to smell the younger vampire or, worst case scenario, human blood being spilled.

"That's not a bad idea...a little stalkerish, but not bad."

The two continued to comb the woods for a few minutes until Damon stiffened up next to Harry and his head shot to the left, scenting the air.

"Blood," he announced. "Towards the parking lot."

Harry didn't wait for Damon to continue, he was too consumed by panic. In an instant, he had pictured his car and magically transported himself there, a process Emily's grimoire noted as apparition, an upper level skill. He popped into existence in front of his and Elena's vehicle, immediately sighting a scuffle coming from near the trees. He sprinted like never before, fueled by the sight of Ginny tossing Elena across the parking lot like a rag doll before stalking after her. His heart seized as he spotted Jeremy flopped against a nearby tree, unconscious at best.

Ginny looked up as she heard Harry approach, eyes widening marginally as she saw the furious teen running at her like an avenging angel. The red head snarled angrily, using a burst of vampiric strength to reach Elena and lift her from the ground. If Harry was going to take her out, she'd at least take the human girl with her.

Harry's righteous anger was doubled as Ginny picked her sister off of the ground. He was close enough to see the victorious smirk emerge on the vampire's face as she lifted the unconscious human. Harry reached out with his magic desperately, praying to any deity that would listen that he could act before Ginny ripped into his twin sister.

Ginny triumphantly glared at the delicate teen running at her, and allowed herself a small mental gloat before she attacked Elena. A low groan was all that came out of her throat, though, as the red-head opened her mouth to rip into the girl's arteries. Ginny looked down, somewhat confused, and spotted a large tree branch extending from her chest. Elena fell into a heap as Ginny lost the ability to hold the human. Ginny's moaning ceased, her body turning a sickening white as it appeared to wither before Harry's eyes.

Harry reached the two as Ginny fell backwards, impaled on the wooden branch. He surveyed the scene; his sister was laying unconscious, bleeding from her eyebrow, Jeremy was cowering against a tree, completely out of his league, and Ginny was dead on the ground in front of Harry. Ginny was dead, by Harry's hands.

I killed her, Harry thought, tears suddenly flowing down the boy's face. I _killed_ Ginny Weasley. I am solely responsible for her death, the boy's mind was running a mile a minute. He sank to his knees with a choked sob, dissolving into hysterics as he knelt in front of the corpse of one of his oldest friends' sister.

This was the scene Damon arrived at a few seconds later, having ran after the scent of the blood as soon as Harry had apparated. He approached Harry slowly, knowing Stefan would take care of Elena when he got there. The teen's shoulders were shaking hard as he cried violently.

"Harry?" Damon whispered, crouching beside the boy. Harry turned and pulled his hands away from his eyes. The human boy's face was streaked with tears and his skin was red and splotchy. "You should go. Take care of your brother. Stefan and I will take care of Ginny and your sister."

"I k-k-killed her," Harry stuttered, still crying. "Sh-she was going to eat Elena. B-but I killed h-h-her! Jeremy is go-going to hate me."

Damon wrapped his arms around Harry, pulling the smaller male flush against him. He wasn't even irritated with the force of Harry's tears on his leather jacket. Harry's sobs doubled in strength as he buried his face into Damon's neck. Damon whispered nonsense words of comfort into the boy's ear. He was somewhat relieved –not that he cared- when Stefan arrived, the younger Salvatore making sure Elena was alright, though Damon could hear her heartbeat and had quickly discerned the fact that she was alright. Ginny had just knocked the girl out, no permanent damage done.

Harry extricated himself from the vampire's arms as his crying diminished in force. He looked into Damon's glacial eyes which were reflecting no small amount of concern back at the teen.

"You did this," Harry whispered. "This is your fault."

"It doesn't matter now. It's done."

"She died. I killed her. Ginny's dead now. Of course it matters. It's all that matters and you know it." Harry searched the vampire's eyes.

"Take your siblings home. Stefan and I will take care of Ginny and come to your house afterwards. We'll talk more then."

Harry sighed, closing his eyes tightly and rubbing his temples to stave off a headache. He finally agreed to Damon's conditions. He had the sinking feeling that no matter what happened at his house later that night, nothing would be the same afterwards.

ooo

A/n: Lots in this one, yeah? Our masked man has been revealed! Now you just have to wait and see how he's connected to Mess-tic Falls.

Next Chapter- The details of Ginny trying to fulfill her dietary needs with Elena, Harry learns the truth about Katherine's connection to the brothers, and strange dreams begin to plague our lovely protagonist.

REVIEW! Please. Thank you.

: )


	9. IX

Disclaimer: I own an overweight Golden Retriever, one button down from Express, and a slowly dying MacBook. Notice how none of those things involve Harry Potter or the Vampire Diaries.

**IX**

"_Get these left handed lovers out of your way,_

_They look hopeful, but you, you should not stay._

_If you want me to break down and give you the keys,_

_I can do that, but I can't let you leave._

_Oh, please don't go, I want you so._

_I can't let you go, for I lose control..."_

_-Please Don't Go, Barcelona_

ooo

The Black household was never more aptly named than the night of the Halloween party. Harry had finally managed to wrangle a catatonic brother and comatose sister back to their house, eminently thankful that their adoptive parents were gone for the weekend.

Jeremy had as it turned out, been conscious for Ginny's assault. She'd been about to bite him when Elena had found them and intervened, drawing the vampire's ire. When Jeremy had attempted to step between Ginny and Elena, the short-fused vampire had thrown him against the tree Harry had seen the boy slumped on before she fully began attacking Elena.

Jeremy had revealed this from the couch in the Black living room, idly stroking a hand through Elena's brown hair as her head lay in his lap, her body stretched across the couch docilely. She still hadn't woken up, something Harry was somewhat thankful for. Calming Jeremy down had taken the better part of fifteen minutes.

"I don't get it. I mean...I know what I saw, but I just don't understand," Jeremy sighed, turning big brown eyes up at Harry. The older teen was struck momentarily by how much the two on the couch favored each other. Both of them had chocolate brown hair and big doe eyes, the same shade of brown. Sometimes Harry felt like the black sheep of the family.

The witch shifted against the window, he'd been keeping a watch out for the Salvatores, before facing and answering his younger brother.

"There are more things on Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy," Harry whispered.

Jeremy's gaze merely turned quizzical, causing Harry's lips to quirk upward and his too-green eyes to soften as he turned back to the window.

"_Hamlet_," he answered the unasked question. "It's one of Elena's favorites."

Harry's hand reached up to caress the dark blue curtain hanging by his face, an act of boredom, as his mind turned in restless circles. He had killed a girl that night. Granted, she was a psychotic superhuman hellbent on draining every drop of blood in Elena's body. Despite that, she had still been his oldest friend's baby sister. His younger brother had been in love with her, to a degree, and now she was dead.

In the permanent and non only-wears-tight-black-clothing kinda way, he mentally corrected.

Harry's lips twisted into a frown as he pondered that particular party trick. Killing was clearly well within his abilities, and if he was going to be completely honest with himself, it was something he would do again under the same circumstances. He'd been given these powers for a reason, and surely that reason was defend his family against the creatures of Mystic Falls. This new reality he found himself in was almost too much. Vampires, magic, and the ability to destroy a life with intent alone.

Harry didn't stop brooding as his hand absently lowered from the curtain to the gemstone hanging under his shirt, unconsciously seeking comfort from the powerful talisman. The silence was broken by Jeremy, still playing with Elena's hair.

"For months after you and Elena moved in, I felt like crap...like, nothing I did was gonna make one of my dads notice me crap. Which really just made me feel worse, because it's not like you two were looking for the attention...I mean, you were just orphaned," Jeremy paused for breath. He wouldn't make eye contact with Harry, instead choosing to stare down at Elena's brown mop of hair.

"Then, I started getting these moments. These moments where everything wasn't so colorless, so sad and lifeless, and guess what I realized?" The handsome youth smiled softly, turning up from Elena with suspiciously wet brown eyes. "Ginny was in all of those moments."

Harry felt his heart break all over again with that statement. Hot tears fought to make their way out of his eyes, and the witch had to stifle a sob as he cautiously inched toward Jeremy.

"Now, I don't understand what happened tonight," Jeremy's voice broke. "But I do understand that Ginny was a good person. She wouldn't have done anything like this normally, and she deserved better than what she got."

Harry had seated himself on the arm of the couch by this point, and pulled Jeremy's head against his own torso, wrapping tired arms around the younger boy. The witch began crying, despite his better intentions, as Jeremy's shoulders began to shake in silent sobs against Harry's stomach.

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered brokenly. He was holding the larger teen to his chest like a stuffed toy, reassuring himself that Jeremy was alive and well. "I'm so sorry...I just couldn't let her hurt Elena. I couldn't let her hurt _you._ I didn't mean for it to end like it did..."

The two kept crying, clutching each other like life jackets, unaware of the two vampires standing on the front porch. Damon and Stefan had arrived not long ago, but were giving the two humans a chance to have it out before barging in again.

"Don't look at me with those judge-y eyes, Stefan," Damon growled, pacing.

"I'm not judging anything," Stefan sniffed. "Judgement means that I have an opinion. That all of this is completely your fault is no opinion, it's a fact."

The older of the two glared menacingly at his brother, coming to an abrupt halt in his anxious walking. Yes, he admitted to himself, all of this was indeed his fault. Did everyone have to keep reminding him of this?

No.

This time, Damon hadn't actually meant to fuck everything up. Chaos and pandemonium were generally circumstances he made a point to cause, but he'd honestly not seen this coming.

Well, that was a complete lie. Mystic Falls was proving to be so _boring_, though. Also, if he was going to be totally candid with himself, he'd been acting out at Harry finding out he was a vampire when he'd turned the girl.

Damon wrinkled his nose in irritation. Until Katherine was out of the tomb, he wouldn't act so rashly.

The _slight_ attachment he was beginning to feel for Harry had nothing to do with the boy's inability to censor his words when nervous, nor did it have anything to do with the way his emotions played out in high definition on his face. Harry could never be an effective liar.

Damon assuaged himself that it had more to do with what Harry's legs looked like when he wore Elena's cheerleading shorts, all slim muscle and pale skin. Yes, Damon decided, it was likely just sexual frustration that would be easily cured when the Tomb was opened.

"You are a life ruiner, Damon. You ruin lives. You always have, and you always will. It's just the way of the Universe," Stefan interrupted Damon's inner monologue. "Birds gotta fly, fish gotta swim, and Damon won't be happy until everyone around him is living in misery."

Damon schooled his features into a decidedly unimpressed mask, "Someone's feeling froggy this evening. Perhaps it has something to do with his diet?"

Stefan merely rolled his eyes at Damon's evasiveness, turning his attention to the inside of the house. "I think Elena's waking up."

The elder Salvatore looked into the living room to see Elena sitting up with a slightly dazed expression, clutching at Jeremy's hand. Jeremy was still leaning on Harry, who had turned away and was surreptitiously wiping at his eyes.

Damon nodded, and Stefan knocked on the door. Damon gave a little wave as Harry sharply turned to the window, relaxing when he recognized the dark form through the frame. The slender teen stood from the couch and walked to the door.

The oak barrier swung open to reveal the most tired visage either brother had ever seen the witch wear. His bright green eyes were bloodshot, dark circles were forming under his pale eyelids. Even his hair seemed to lay flatter than usual.

"Hi," Harry greeted simply. He shifted slightly and gestured into the house, "Come on in."

The two entered, Damon allowing Stefan to go first, and made themselves as comfortable as possible in the horribly disquiet atmosphere. Stefan made to stand by the fireplace, brooding on the mantle, and Damon fell gracefully onto the recliner, ignoring the offensive plaid print for the time being. Harry attempted no move to reclaim the arm of the couch, instead choosing to stand awkwardly in the doorframe.

Silence reigned in the room for a good five minutes, only broken by a guarded request from Jeremy.

"So," he looked up expectantly, "Who wants to explain to me exactly what went down tonight?"

When no one made any move to answer, shuffling their feet or feeling a sudden urge to scratch at their hairline, Harry rolled his eyes before charging through the awkward mire.

"First things first: I can do magic," Harry groused, clearly upset that no one else was talking.

"Umm...how much did you drink tonight?" Jeremy appeared worried, checking the urge to check his older brother's head for a fever.

"Absolutely nothing, I was too busy chasing your undead fuck buddy through a sea of boozed up, horny teenagers dressed as naughty nurses, sexy soldiers, busty bumblebees, and all sorts of shit," Harry paused. "I'm sorry, that was tactless, wasn't it?"

"I wonder, is there a spell for thinking before you speak?" Elena murmured, smiling fondly at her twin.

"Whatever," Harry steered the conversation back to his witchcraft. "I am a card carrying witch. I can set things on fire, move things around, and I can do this really cool thing with water hoses that I found out when I was washing Remus' car last week."

"You're serious, aren't you?" Jeremy was eyeing Harry mistrustfully. "Prove it."

The green eyed teen flicked his wrist carelessly, his facial expression not changing. Jeremy looked in the direction that Harry had gestured and found Stefan standing broodily at the fireplace, sporting a new hot pink hairdo.

Stefan's face became quizzical as the others in the room turned to him, Damon laughing out loud. He leveled Harry with a confused gaze, "What did you do to me?"

The witch ignored the question, instead staring Jeremy down. "Do you believe me now?"

The teen's response was a whistled exhalation, "I suppose I have to with evidence like that. Wait...you said undead earlier when you were talking about Ginny. What did you mean?"

Harry revealed rows of even white teeth, smiling without humor, "Ginny was a vampire."

"I mean, yeah. I'd say the fangs gave it away," Jeremy scoffed. "What does that have to do with anything? Ron was Frankenstein, but it doesn't really have bearing on what we're talking about."

Damon chuckled, "No, kid. Ginny was an _actual_ vampire. Those fangs were real, and she was about five seconds from ripping into Elena's throat and sucking her down like a bottle of cheap tequila."

Everyone in the room turned to frown at the vampire draped across the recliner, all of them varying levels of disturbed by the imagery. Damon just met their gazes with a look of innocence.

"Regardless of the phrasing, Damon is right," Harry admitted. He walked back to the screen door, the other having been left open, and looked out on the bare, dark street. "Ginny was a vampire, and she was about to hurt Elena. I just wanted to stop her, and my magic made it happen."

Harry turned around to face Jeremy, whose face had darkened notably. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Jeremy."

"Stop apologizing," Jeremy breathed shakily. "It's all just a lot to take in. I'm going to lay down. Maybe I'll forget all of this in my sleep."

Jeremy finished the sentence with a listless chuckle and stood up. He squeezed Elena's hand for some comfort and left the room, taking the stairs two at a time in order to leave the morose silence veiling the living room like night.

"If only it were that easy," Harry muttered. He reluctantly walked over to the recliner Damon was seated on and perched on the edge of the arm, moving Damon's jean-clad leg out of his way. For his part, Damon just lazily smirked up at the boy before replacing his leg, now on Harry's lap.

"Maybe it can be," Elena was frowning. She looked up at Stefan intently, his hair still a startling shade of pink. "You can make him forget, can't you? Compel him to forget he ever dated Ginny. Make it so that she was just a girl he'd seen at school, been friends with idly? He'd be sad she was gone, but not heartbroken like this."

"There's no guarantee it would work, because of who I am," Stefan's tone was cautious. "Because of how I live, I don't know if I have the ability to do it right."

"I can do it," Damon shifted until he was seated upright. He gazed at Harry seriously, catching the full attention of those bright green orbs. "If you want it done, I'll do it."

"I want you to do it," Elena said quickly, anxiety clearly written on her face.

"No," Harry interrupted. His turned a fierce expression to his twin sister. "We can't do this. We can't meddle in Jeremy's memories, his perceptions. It's not right."

Damon felt the room begin to fill with the static energy he'd begun to associate with the boy sitting next to him. He covered Harry's hand with his larger one, calming the powerful teen before the Black's artwork began to burst into flames.

"Harry, think about it," Elena pleaded. "Jeremy hasn't been the same since he met Ginny, drugs, sex, all this drinking. He's failing his classes and he was using this toxic relationship as a crutch. This is a chance for us to help him out in the long run. We can fix the problem, rather than let him throw his life away."

Harry exhaled deeply, facing Damon when the vampire squeezed his hand reassuringly, "It won't hurt him, and there's no chance he'll remember on his own if I do this."

"No," Harry's answer was quick. He ignored Elena's disapproving sneer. "If this is going to be done, I'll do it. There was a spell in the Grimoire for altering memories. I already have the page marked, in case anyone discovered my magic before I was ready."

"Harry..." His twin looked at him somberly.

"It's fine," Harry stood up, a stoic expression on his face as he dropped Damon's hand. He looked at the vampire, "Meet me in my room? We can talk once I'm done."

At Damon's affirmative nod, Harry slowly turned and left the room. He was very torn about what should actually happen, but if anyone was going to mess with Jeremy's memories, it would be him. That way, if anything went wrong, Harry could take responsibility over Elena.

"I feel like the pointy black hat will make sure the spell works," the older vampire noted with no small amount of glee in his voice. "Oh, and Stefan, he turned your hair to a shade of pink that only a second grader or a person with a Lisa Frank fetish would ever find enjoyable."

Harry's returning grumble was overly soft, but wholly audible to the two vampires in the room. "You are such an asshole."

ooo

The first thing Harry did upon reaching his bedroom was strip himself from the witch costume he'd crafted earlier. Settling into a pair of basketball shorts that he'd definitely not stolen from Jeremy and a tank top, Harry found it much easier to relax somewhat as he leafed through the Bennett Grimoire.

This was wrong, and he knew it to the very core of his being. You just didn't mess with people like this, his very magic was against the idea. Normally, at the mere thought of use, energy would practically crackle from his fingertips. Now, though? Nothing.

However, Harry wanted the fallout from this to rest on his shoulders. Elena just wanted the best for her brother, and Damon really had no obligation to do Harry or Elena's dirty work for them.

Harry sighed as he found the bookmarked page, and quickly put the charm to memory. He'd already memorized how to edit memories once the person was under the spell, as he'd hazarded that the tampering was the difficult part. The last thing he needed was to fry Jeremy's brain, or to make him forget his own name.

The book made a solemn thud as the green eyed witch closed it, and Harry lightly stroked the leather-bound tome before leaving the room. His feet were like lead as he approached Jeremy's bedroom, each step more difficult to take than the last.

Harry pushed open Jeremy's door, finding it slightly ajar as he neared it. It opened to reveal the younger boy sprawled on his bed, also changed into regular clothes, clearly asleep. Harry sat on the edge of the bed gingerly, avoiding the clothes, books, and general mess on the floor.

He pushed a brown lock out of Jeremy's face, and a sad sort of smile crossed his face as exactly what he was about to do registered in the witch's brain.

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered.

"_Dearmad a dh__éanamh air."_

ooo

A slightly more exhausted –magically, emotionally, and physically- Harry crept into his room about an hour after leaving the living room. The first thing he noticed was that the lights were unbearably bright for nearing three in the morning.

The second thing he noticed was that Damon Salvatore was sprawled across his bed, dark hair haloing his sinfully perfect face against Harry's white pillowcase. This sight caused no small amount of heat to rush southward as Harry fought the flush he was sure was emerging on his face.

"Is it done?" Damon asked, arching a coal brow at Harry.

"Yeah," Harry answered weakly, making no move from the doorframe. "It's done."

Damon sat up, causing Harry to look away as the vampire's chest, visible because of the top few buttons on his shirt being undone, worked to pull his weight up. The vampire flashed a fanged smirk at the pretty red blush forming on the witch's cheekbones.

"Why'd you do it?" Harry asked archly. He moved a chair from his computer desk to the floor in front of the bed with magic, sitting delicately and assuming an expectant look.

"Turn Ginny?"

Harry nodded at the vampire's question, carefully noting that Damon's frowned a little at the question. He had no doubts that the somewhat-immortal was debating on telling him the truth or just lying again.

"Truthfully?" Glacial eyes narrowed Harry's universe down to himself and the vampire. The question was clearly a loaded one. Harry wanted to know the truth, but at the same time, Harry had no desire to know why Ginny had been transformed into a vampire.

Harry simply nodded his head in response.

"I was bored," the vampire broke their eye contact, suddenly finding Harry's calender infinitely interesting.

"You attacked her, killed her, and fed her your blood out of boredom?" The witch's voice held no emotion, and Damon glanced over to see a decidedly unimpressed look on his face.

"It's one of the pitfalls of eternity," Damon responded easily. A roguish smile developed on his face, sending Harry's stomach aflutter again. "Also, if you'll recall, you'd just found out about my...dietary needs. I was somewhat worried that you'd flip out, and I sort of had a knee-jerk reaction."

"By eating my little brother's sort-of-but-not-really girlfriend?" Harry pursed his lips at the vampire. He sighed as the vampire nodded. Clearly, there was a disconnect between Damon's logic and Harry's, but he still couldn't find it in himself to be overly angry with Damon.

"I should break up with you, you know? End this...whatever this is between us. You killed a girl, which later caused me to kill a vampire, who happened to be someone who meant a lot to my brother and one of my oldest friends. I should be furious," Harry glared acidly at the vampire. "Instead, I'm just...over it. I just want it to blow over."

"You know," Damon began, a cryptic tone to his voice. "I haven't really been with anyone in an emotional way since Katherine. She was the most important thing that's ever happened to me. She turned my brother and I, promised us eternity, and then left us alone. Katherine filled me with all this poison towards Stefan, and then left me alone. When she died, a part of me died with her. For the past century, I've been nothing but a vindictive, hateful creature."

His blue eyes were half-lidded, and he shifted so that one of his legs were on the mattress, turning to face Harry more fully before continuing. "You've changed that...err...you're beginning to. This whatever this is between us, it's important. You feel it, too, don't you?"

Harry had gotten up from his chair while Damon was speaking, banishing it back to the computer desk. He was now perched on the windowsill, eyebrows drawn together as he handled his chin in thought.

"I don't know what I feel, Damon. I don't know whether any of what you just said to me was true, and part of me doesn't care. You're dangerous, and every ounce of you oozes that," Harry ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Everything was easier before I met you."

Damon's face twisted in displeasure at the thought, "I can make it that way, if you want."

"I wish I could forget you. Wish I hadn't met you, that I was still just the sad orphan kid with the twin sister. No magic, no vampires, no dead girls," Harry paused to breathe, whipping his head to face Damon directly as he walked over to the vampire. He stopped immediately in front of the immortal, looking down on him with a dark, intense expression on his face.

"But I can't. With everything that's happened, I can't lose how I feel about you. I don't know how well this is going to work out for me, but I can't deny that some part of me needs you in my life."

With that sentence in the air, he reached out and placed his hand on Damon's face, marveling at the chill in his body temperature. His hand skimmed across the soft skin and grabbed the vampire's chin, tipping Damon's head up as he lowered his own.

There were no fireworks, Harry was somewhat disappointed to note. The vampire's lips were as chilly as his face had been, and the witch was overly aware of the fact that his lips were somewhat dry against the vampire's.

The kiss ended almost as soon as it had begun, and Harry noticed that Damon had snaked a large hand into Harry's hair, holding him just above the immortal. Damon lightly tugged at the inky locks, massaging Harry's scalp slightly.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" Damon murmured into Harry's lips, an act that in and of itself caused Harry's gym shorts to suddenly feel two sizes too small.

Their second kiss quickly turned heated, Damon Salvatore having initiated it, after all. Damon's slick tongue soon plundered the witch's mouth. Harry nearly laughed at the fact that the vampire's mouth had a decidedly metallic twang to it, doubtlessly iron, but the chuckle melted into a soft moan as over one hundred years of kissing experience began to work it's magic on the teen.

Damon pulled the teen into his lap, wrapping an arm around Harry's waist securely while leaving the other wrapped in the black nest of hair on his head. The witch settled his hands on the planes of Damon's chest, taking in the pure strength of his...boyfriend? Lover? Cross-species sex partner?

They finally broke apart for air, and Damon nipped at Harry's swollen bottom lip, fighting the urge to flip the boy over onto the bed and ravage him. He settled for dropping his head onto Harry's shoulder, his vampiric side taking delight in Harry's racing heartbeat and the scent of the emerald-eyed boy's arousal.

Harry, for his part, was painfully turned on by the vampire's ministrations. As he panted slightly, he realized that he did indeed need Damon Salvatore in his life, for better or for worse.

"Stay with me? At least until I go to sleep?" Harry asked, threading his fingers through the vampire's hair, enjoying it's silken texture.

"Of course," Damon's response was muddled into Harry's shoulder.

He shifted them around until he was laying on his back, Harry cuddled neatly into his side. The witch burrowed his face into Damon's neck, and wordlessly conjured a blanket to cover both of them and had the lights turned off.

After a whispered good night, Damon listened to Harry's breathing even out in sleep, wondering exactly how much of what he'd said earlier that night was a lie.

ooo

A/n: Shorter chapter than usual, but I think it should prove satisfactory. Again, thank you for all the reviews/favorites/alerts! All the responses kinda make my day. The next update shouldn't take as long as this one did, I'm settling into a new work/school/life/sleep schedule, but I think I've figured writing time into it now.

As a note, the memory charm Harry used on Jeremy was in, to the best of my knowledge, Irish Gaelic. I'm using that language because, in the books, Bonnie's lineage/magic is Druidic, so it stands to reason that the Grimoire would have Druidic spells, yeah? At least I think so.

Also, it's just kinda aesthetically pleasing to me : )

Review, please!


	10. X

Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own either the Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter.

"_And if you wanna wake the sun, just keep on marching to the drums._

_These dreams are forever,_

_Oh, these dreams are forever." _

_-Dance or Die, Janelle Monáe_

ooo

Sirius fought the urge to pace, cracking his knuckles instead to release some energy. The loud popping echoed somewhat dreadfully in the quiet room. This caused the other occupants to eye Sirius with no small amount of disdain, colored with amusement on Remus' part.

"When Tyler was a young boy, he also popped his knuckles when bored," Carol Lockwood declared somewhat venomously. She was delicately perched on her usual love seat in the Lockwood library, exuding contempt for the others crowding the room.

"We all have our nervous habits, Carol," Sirius' tone was equally facetious. "As I recall from our youth, you spent a particularly large amount of time near exams getting on your knees fo-"

"Sirius!" Remus hissed, slapping his hand around the other man's wrist. "Do be quiet. This is neither the time nor the place."

Sirius didn't respond verbally, instead turning his hand to grab Remus' and twine their fingers together. They were in the windowsill, seated on the bay window overlooking the back lawn, directly across from Sheriff Granger.

The taciturn woman ran a hand through her short brown hair, sighing in the manner of a particularly long-suffering sibling at the others' antics. "Can we at least pretend to be adults here? Severus wouldn't have signaled for a meeting if it wasn't absolutely necessary."

The man in question chose that exact moment to stride into the library, dark cloak billowing behind him like a storm cloud. His normally pale skin was even lighter than normal, making him look somewhat sickly in the fluorescent lighting. He nodded a greeting at the others before sitting heavily on a table close by.

"You doing alright there, old boy?" Sirius queried, fighting the inane worry he felt over his old classmate's harassed appearance.

"I...have been better, I'll admit," the greasy-haired man looked pained at his admission.

"Well then, let's get straight to business so you can go rest," the Sheriff offered. _And so I can go rest also_, the woman mentally sighed. Again.

"Very well," Severus paused to inhale and decide how to present his news. "I was attacked in the cemetery last week. The vampire made away with the Compass."

The whole room stiffened at the man's proclamation. They were all aware of the implications of this statement, and none of them were pleased with the development. The only ones who'd already known of Severus' attack were Sirius and the Sheriff.

"I would hazard a guess that this means the vampire now knows that we know about him. Her. It. Bother." Remus' face was quizzical.

Severus merely shrugged an answer, a notably low-brow response from the normally uptight man.

"And no, before you ask," the bat-resembling man glared pointedly at Carol Lockwood, "I did not see the vampire that attacked me."

She shifted in her seat, feigning that she had no intention of asking the question. Remus frowned at Severus' abrasive comment. The man was hiding something, and Remus was going to get to the bottom of it.

"So we now have no way of finding the vampire, or vampires, and they know we're hunting for them? On top of that, they _really_ know that Severus is hunting for them?" Carol asked, a jaunty tone to her voice belying the seriousness of the situation.

Sirius had to grip Remus' hand harder in an effort to avoid calling the vapid woman a bitch.

"So it seems," Severus grumbled. "We still have the Device, though, correct?"

"I suppose there is that," Sheriff Granger nodded. "So, if we can ever find this son of a bitch, we'll be able to take them out. Possibly."

"Did you ever find anything about the Weasley girl, by the way?" Remus questioned the Sheriff.

"Yes. Thankfully, she wasn't another victim to this vampire atrocity; she just skipped town. Apparently, between her brother and your children," she gestured at Remus and Sirius, "the pressure to give up the partying was too much for her."

The Sheriff raised her shoulders in a brusque shrug before continuing. "I questioned half of Mystic Falls High School, and every answer I received led me to believe she's really just run away."

The room then fell into an uncomfortable silence, each member of the Founder's Council retreating back into their own thoughts. Eventually Carol broke the quietude by clearing her throat.

"I received a fair amount of vervain from the Salvatore family, so I have someone making jewelry for the deputies, the Council, and our immediate families. The jewelry should be ready by Founder's Day."

"That's good news," Remus assented. He then grinned a little, "Might I ask how you got the vervain? The last I tried to contact Zach, he was dead."

Sirius chuckled, squeezing Remus' hand lightly, "You've been with me too long. You're beginning to make off-color jokes like mine."

"Too soon?" Remus looked around the room with an innocent expression on his face.

The Lockwood matriarch was the only person in the room who looked unamused. The Sheriff was hiding her face behind a callused hand, and even Severus was smiling the crooked excuse for a smile he sported sometimes.

Carol waited for the others to gather themselves before answering Lupin's question. "Actually, I received the vervain from Damon, Zach's nephew. Apparently, Zach had filled Damon in on our...situation, prior to his death."

Remus and Sirius both assumed identical expressions on hearing Damon's name, fully aware of his relationship with their adopted son.

"He's a good boy," Carol continued, seeing the Blacks' thunderous expressions. "He said he'd provide the Council with vervain as it grew, and anything else we need help with."

The rest of the library was too lost in thought to notice Severus' wholly uncharacteristic gobsmacked face as he stared down Carol Lockwood. He eventually managed to hinge his jaw back together as he wondered why the vampire would supply them with vervain.

Severus would merely have to double check the jewelry once they received it. Surely Damon was giving them false vervain. Perhaps lavender or something close in appearance to the vampire countering herb.

"Well," Carol stood up from her seat, brushing the front of her dress clear of invisible particulates. "I hate to be a bad hostess, but with Richard gone on business, I think it's safe to say this meeting is concluded. You can show yourselves out, I believe."

ooo

"Alaric Saltzman," the man announced. His declaration was accompanied by the squeaking of a black marker as he wrote his name on the whiteboard. He was dressed in a blue-button down and slacks that flattered his figure very nicely. Harry idly mused that the man would be very handsome, provided he wasn't a teacher, of course.

He'd finished writing his name on the whiteboard before continuing, "It's a mouthful, I know, it doesn't exactly roll off of the tongue. I'll be your new history teacher."

Harry tuned out of the Mr. Saltzman's speech at that moment, instead choosing to gnaw on his pen-tip lightly while gazing out of the classroom door. His seat was directly next to the window in the back corner of the room, a position which led to him staring in a longing manner at the freedom so close by.

His eyes narrowed as a woman walked past the door. She paused shortly, gazing directly at Harry before continuing on her way. She was dressed in a blue cotton dress complete with a bustle, white apron, and a bonnet perched on her head. Her caramel skin tone and elfin features were somewhat familiar to Harry.

As he looked around the classroom, it was clear no one else had seen her, and the witch hesitantly stood from his desk and left the room silently. He stepped out into the hallway and saw her glide out of the side exit to the school's history and social studies building. Harry frowned darkly before picking up his pace and following her outside.

Before he knew it, Harry was full-out running, and he'd followed the peculiarly dressed woman all the way through the woods to the cemetery. She stopped in small grove, the remains of a building on her right. All that was left of the structure were the stone walls, laden with moss. Grave-markers dotted the field around her, and she turned to face Harry as he cantered up to her.

The woman was facing away from him, her face in profile as she stared at the ruined building. She looked as if she'd just walked off of the set of _Gone with the Wind._ Her skin was a creamy sort of cafe au lait, very reminiscent of Bonnie. In fact, the woman's diminutive facial features were exactly like Bonnie's as well. The resemblance between the two was suddenly striking to Harry. He realized with a start that this woman must be Emily Bennett, Bonnie's ancestor, the woman who had charmed the amber gemstone Damon had given him.

"Please help me," the woman demurred, her face clear of expression as she slowly turned around to face the boy directly.

"Who are you?" Harry panted, his face revealing his mistrust of the woman. She smiled sharply at the teenage boy, lifting a fine black brow.

"I'm Emily," she answered. "You know that. You're wearing my necklace."

"Where am I?" Harry's hand instinctively groped for his chest, fondling the amber gem given to him by Damon. His eyes searched the forest, suddenly all-too aware of the fact that there was nothing around them.

There was no breeze, no movement in the foliage, the sounds of all animal life were strangely absent from the copse he and Emily were standing in. Also, the sun was blindingly bright in the sky, washing out their surroundings like an overexposed photograph. It was almost overwhelmingly creepy to the younger witch.

"This is where it started," the woman paused. "And this is where it has to end."

Harry shook his head firmly, "This isn't real."

He made to run off, but when he turned around, Emily was standing in front of him. He stifled a gasp and pivoted to the left, where Emily blocked his path again.

"Help me," the woman grated. Her voice had taken on a turbulent inflection, and her face was pinched angrily at Harry.

Harry let out a tiny squeak of fear as he shot awake in class. The new teacher, Saltzman, continued lecturing as if nothing had occurred, but the students sitting close to Harry peered at him curiously. The witch slowed his breathing, attempting to calm himself from the odd dream.

As his heart rate returned to normalcy, he noticed that the girl sitting to his left was still eyeing him obnoxiously. He turned to the girl and snapped at her.

"What are you looking at? Turn around."

The girl in question curled her lip upward at him in a sneer before facing Mr. Saltzman, presumably to listen to the topic at hand. Harry had no desire to enrich his brain in history following a dream about Mammy's hateful sidekick, and instead turned to his messenger bag in order to grab his phone.

As he turned, he let out a wild shriek and nearly fell out of his desk. Emily Bennett was seated next to him in the classroom, staring the witch down with a small smirk on her face.

He jolted awake again, thankfully not in school this time, he noticed. As he groggily felt for his glasses, he realized he wasn't in his bedroom either. Groping his way through pine needles and dirt, he came to the frightening realization that he was in the grove that he'd followed Emily to in his nightmare.

The witch sat up on the ground, peripherally aware of the chill of the ground permeating his clothes. A laugh turned into a stifled sob as he was abjectly thankful that he'd worn Jeremy's shorts to bed that night rather than Elena's.

Harry fought the urge to cry as he pulled the Bennett talisman from under his shirt. His thoughts were frantic as he pondered the necklace. _What are you doing to me? I can't control my emotions, can't control my magic, and now these dreams. What does this mean?_

The witch sniffled as he stood shakily from the dirt, his feet a filthy brown from thrashing about in his sleep. He took the necklace off as he hobbled unevenly over to a gravestone, left leg asleep.

"I'm sorry, Emily," the green-eyed boy whispered thickly. "I don't want this."

He gingerly placed the necklace on the gravestone. He turned and didn't give it a parting glance before magically teleporting himself to his bedroom.

ooo

"Harry? You look...umm...err...very natural. Would you like to come in?" The vampire finally managed. Damon was nonplussed by Harry's appearance at the boarding house at five in the morning. Especially considering he looked as if he'd just spent the night in a stable.

"Bite me," Harry croaked. He pushed past the vampire and collapsed onto the nearest piece of furniture, the large black couch in the living room. "I have twigs in my hair, my feet are caked in mud, and I slept in a cemetery last night dreaming about a woman."

Damon cautiously approached the witch, his dark eyebrows drawn together in confusion. "So, I'm assuming that this wouldn't be your idea of a good night? Did you and Elena get into Jeremy's liquor collection? Oh, and you really shouldn't tell your vampire boyfriend to bite you."

The undead man quirked his head to the side as he reached the front of the couch. "Especially when that vampire boyfriend happens to be me. I _will_ take you up on that offer."

"I keep dreaming about fires. So much fire and a ruin in the forest, one surrounded by graves," Harry's voice was toneless, and Damon couldn't read his face because a pale arm was slung across it. "Tonight I dreamed of Emily Bennett. She kept asking me for help. Then I woke up at that ruin in the forest. And Jeremy's collection is no more, he got rid of all of it."

Damon crouched down in front of Harry, and reached out to pull some foliage from the younger boy's face.

"Come on," Damon's hand grazed the witch's cheek. "You can use my shower and I'll get some clothes from your house. We can spend all day making out and watching the Twilight movies with the volume turned _way _up."

Harry's arm slid off of his face as he faced Damon slowly. His face totally conveyed the fact that he thought the vampire had lost his mind for suggesting that series of films. "The Twilight movies? Why the hell would we watch those?"

Damon looked down his nose at Harry while shaking his head. "Because, my little witch," Damon spoke slowly, as if explaining this concept to a small child. "I would be doing my two _favorite_ things in my unlife. Making out with you and irritating the life out of Stefan."

Harry worked to stifle a small laugh. "You're such a giver."

The scalding hot shower on the third floor of the boarding house proved to be exactly what Harry had needed. He exhaled deeply as the hot water helped to melt his anxiety away. The talisman was safely in the forest, so he didn't have to worry about blowing up anyone else's living room or waking up in any other strange cemeteries.

Jeremy had been completely anal about his schoolwork over the four days since Ginny's death. He was also much less full of angst than before, more like the Jeremy that Harry had grown up with. It was a load of stress off of the twins' shoulders, but it was stacking more guilt onto Harry's.

"Shit," Harry cursed. As he'd been lost in thought, the shampoo in his hair had dripped down into his eye and stung like a bitch. The witch stifled a giggle as he rinsed the foamy chemicals out of his hair. The shampoo had been a high end Redken product, proving Damon's vanity to his smaller boyfriend.

Harry wasn't sure where the vampire came into all of the money he clearly spent on his wardrobe and toiletries, –what does a vampire need with $400 lotion, really?- and he was surely not going to ask anytime soon. Let Damon keep that skeleton in his closet, for all Harry was concerned.

Once the shampoo was out of his hair and he'd flushed his eye out, then slender teen cut the shower off with a beleaguered sigh before exiting the large stall. He dried off with an enormously fluffy white towel from the rack adjacent to the shower. The bathroom was as large and spacious as the rest of the house. The floor was white tile to match the countertops and the sink, but all of the walls were a gentle sandstone that also colored the tile in the shower.

Harry made sure the towel was firmly wrapped around his waist before exiting the bathroom. A little into his shower, Damon had knocked on the door and told him that he'd laid out an outfit on the bed. Damon's bedroom was attached to the bathroom, and was equally large. The bed was a massively large affair, low to the ground and covered in pillows and a fluffy tan comforter.

The room was large and airy, with brown walls that glinted gold under the lights. There were also several bookshelves overfilled with what Harry was sure were first editions of novels that would fetch a pretty penny if sold. The carpeting was decadently soft, and the only furniture in the sparse room other than the bed, bookshelves, and a trunk at the foot of the bed was an enormous dresser topped with an ornate mirror.

Harry padded over to the bed and changed hurriedly, trying to beat out the mid-morning chill permeating the old house. Damon had brought him a pair of black gym shorts bearing Mystic Falls High's track team logo, stolen from Jeremy, and a plain tank top to match it. He'd blushed slightly when he'd noticed that Damon had brought him a pair of skimpy black briefs that Elena called his 'party panties.'

Harry only wore them on special occasions.

He exhaled a deeply satisfied breath and moseyed over to the dresser to make an attempt at fixing his hair. The witch's breath caught in his throat, though, as he spied a glinting yellow jewel on top of the dresser.

It was Emily's amulet.

A cold sweat overtook him. He could _feel_ the energy pulsating from the talisman now that he was mindful of it. It was begging him to put it on, slip it over his neck and back onto his chest, where it belonged. Harry's breathing sped up and became somewhat ragged as his consciousness narrowed down to the charm and blocked out the rest of the room.

Before he was really aware of it, he'd already taken a step and reached out for the talisman. With a grunt, Harry lashed out with an eldritch wave and banished the talisman from the room. Where he sent it to, he wasn't quite aware. He remained in that position; hair still wet, panting for breath, and with his arm cast out to the side.

This was the scene that Damon walked in on, causing an eyebrow to quirk on his overly expressive face. Harry snapped into a more 'relaxed' stance, even though his body language screamed his discomfort, and his hair looked like an albatross had nested in it.

Damon peered at the witch curiously, then at his mirror. He turned back to Harry with a dry smile, "Saw yourself in the mirror, did you?"

"Don't be a twat," Harry breathed, a light smile twisting his lips.

"You wound me, fair lady," Damon stumbled back into the doorframe, clutching at his chest with his left hand.

"I am not a lady, thank you very much." The witch glowered, furrowing his jet black eyebrows.

"Besides, how could you be irritated with someone who brought you five of the _Star Wars _films?" The vampire pulled a bag out from behind himself with his right hand. He took in Harry's joyful expression with a wicked smirk. "All of them except for _Revenge_ _of the Sith_, because I know you hate it."

"You're so thoughtful," Harry beamed at the vampire, smiling so widely his face hurt a little.

"You ain't seen nothing yet, sweet thing," the vampire drawled, pulling a small carton out of the bag as he swaggered from the doorframe close to the boy, self-satisfied smirk firmly in place.

"Is that-"

"You bet your pretty ass it is," Damon's ice blue eyes twinkled merrily. "One whole pint of Clusterfluff ice cream for your pleasure. Spoon's in the bag."

"You are the best boyfriend in history." Harry's expression was completely serious, and his voice was humorless as well. Damon closed what little of a gap there was between them, and lowered his face until his cool lips brushed lightly against the witch's.

"Let's get started on de-stressing you, hmm?"

ooo

Several hours, two films, and one devastated pint of ice cream later, Damon and Harry were laying on Damon's bed talking about Damon's upbringing. More aptly, Damon was laying on the bed and Harry was laying on Damon.

"What about you and Stefan? What really happened there?"

"Ah, the Salvatore Brothers; best friends." Damon replied dryly. The hand buried in Harry's raven locks stilled momentarily as Damon gathered his thoughts. "You know how he made the football team at the school, right? I taught him how to play. I was on leave from the Confederate army, we were on the front lawn playing. Katherine was there."

"Katherine?" Harry raised his body off of Damon's slightly so he could see the vampire's face. "_The _Katherine?"

"She claimed to be an orphan from Atlanta, she was staying with us for a while. She was a vampire. She played Stefan and I against each other perfectly. She compelled Stefan, manipulated the both of us, drank from us, and all the while wanted neither of us solely for herself."

"The why'd she do it?" Harry reached out and stroked Damon's cheek, attempting to lessen the strain visible on his boyfriend's face.

"She wanted both of us. Damon, Stefan, and Katherine, traipsing off into the sunset to enjoy each other for eternity. Unfortunately for her, our rather human emotions didn't allow that plan to happen." Damon was frowning rather intensely at this point. "Long story short, she turned us. She later died; she was in Fell's Church when it burned down during the Battle of Willow Creek."

"I'm sorry," Harry whispered. The witch was still stroking the Damon's sharp cheekbone, and his emerald green eyes had a definitely sad cast to them.

"Don't be," Damon brushed it off. "It was a long time ago, and she was no kind of angel."

"One thing I don't understand, if you know Katherine was playing you two, why hate Stefan?"

"He was the reason she was trapped in Fell's Church. The reason why she was killed."

ooo

Jeremy was mildly concerned that Harry had skipped school that day, something that was highly out of character for the smaller teen, but between the three exams, two book reports, four quizzes, and the chemistry lab he had to make up in order to pass his classes, he didn't really care overly much.

The massive workload was the exact reason he found himself in Alaric Saltzman's classroom immediately after the dismissal bell rang, fully intending on groveling his way into some extra credit work. The teacher in question was grading papers quietly, looking much calmer and less harried than the other teachers of Mystic Falls High.

"Hey, Mr. Saltzman?" Jeremy greeted, hesitantly entering the classroom.

"Ah, Jeremy Gilbert. Come in," Alaric smiled benevolently, gesturing in front of his desk.

"Out of all the students you've had today, you remember my name?" The teen asked, approaching the desk much more confidently.

"Did you know your last teacher had a Jackass File? Not a joke. It's typed on the folder's label. It has all the trouble-makers in the school in it, but really it's just an opus –to you."

"Er..." Jeremy's eyes widened slightly, his stomach sinking as he felt his extra credit chances slipping through his fingertips.

"No worries. You've got a clean slate with me," Alaric beamed up at the boy. "That aside, what can I do for you, Mr. Gilbert?"

"How do you feel about extra credit?" Jeremy asked wryly, finding himself liking this teacher, however grudgingly.

Alaric eyed Jeremy contemplatively, interlacing his fingers on the desktop. "Write me a paper."

"Yeah, totally! Umm, what about?"

"History," Alaric grinned. "Pick a topic, but keep it local. No Wikipedia Regurgita. These small towns have a rich history, you just have to get your hands dirty. Do that and you're back on track, deal?"

Alaric reached a hand out and Jeremy clasped it, "Deal. That's a cool ring."

Jeremy was speaking of the thick silver band encircling the man's middle finger. Alaric shrugged, as if to minimize the compliment.

"Thanks. It was my father's. It's a little garish, but...family, you know?"

"Yeah. I do know."

ooo

"What about your diet?" Harry and Damon were in much the same position as before, though they had taken a small break for the witch to raid their kitchen, surprised at its full stock.

"I drink from humans. Willing, when possible. I don't drink to kill, either, before you give me that look that you humans like to give me. Ginny was...an exception to the rule." Damon answered.

"So you wipe their memories of it afterwards?" Harry found himself less perturbed by the idea than he'd expected. Damon was a vampire. Vampires needed blood to survive. If that meant his boyfriend fed from people every now and again, not killing them, in order to survive? So be it.

"Generally. Either that, or I make something entertaining up. A 'texts from last night' sort of thing for the person to deal with like waking up cuddling with a bottle of glue and a stuffed giraffe or something."

Harry laughed softly at that admission. "If you can feed from someone without killing them, why does Stefan live off of animal blood, knowing it keeps him from getting stronger?"

"He doesn't like the idea of toying with someone's memories. He also doesn't want to lose himself to bloodlust. Sometimes, if it's been too long, you can't help yourself." Damon's arm around Harry's waist gripped somewhat tighter without him realizing it.

"Anything else I should know?"

"Hmm," Damon pondered. "Vervain is poisonous to us. It's an herb, used to be native to these parts. We can't ingest it, either directly or through human blood. A little bit will knock a vampire out for a few hours, a lot of it will knock one of us out for days, even weeks."

"What do you mean 'used to be native?'"

"Our father grew the vervain the town council used. After he died, I destroyed it," Damon's voice was steely, keeping Harry from asking about their father. "Also, if a person wears vervain or has it in their blood, they're immune to our compulsions. Stefan gave your sister a vervain necklace."

"What about me?" Damon could hear the frown in green-eyed teen's voice.

"Your powers protect you, little witch. You, Bonnie, and Bonnie's grandmother are immune to our mental compulsions. At least, to a vampire my strength or lower. Vampires get stronger as they get older, you may not be immune to an Ancient's abilities." Damon's gaze became thoughtful.

"Comforting," Harry deadpanned. "I don't have to worry about any Ancients, though, do I?"

"Not to my knowledge, and if you do, I'll protect you," Damon smiled charmingly at the petite human.

"Flatterer."

"I can't help it if you deserve limitless praise and worship," Damon flipped the two of them over neatly, so that he was on top of the smaller teen. Harry gasped as Damon lowered his weight, pressing every plane of muscle onto the witch. The vampire used that as an opportunity to steal a kiss from Harry, leaving the teen breathless and more than slightly aroused.

"You know," Harry panted, "There really is something to be said for a century's practice in kissing."

"Just wait, little witch," Damon growled playfully, bearing his fangs. "One day soon, we'll get to the main event, and then you'll see what I'm _really_ good at."

Harry's answering groan was stifled with Damon's lips.

ooo

A/n: Yay, new chapter! Sorry for taking so long, my outline ran out mid-chapter, so I had to finish it. Also, my Dad had surgery (he's bueno now, no worries), so writing took the backburner for a week. I'm back now, though.

I've also got another HP crossover in the works, the first chapter of which is half-written, and I have a one-shot idea I _really_ want to write, and will probably finish before the other. Be on the lookout for those, please.

As always, I hope you enjoy, and leave me a review if you'd like : )


	11. XI

Disclaimer: I still do not own either the Vampire Diaries or Harry Potter. It's still a sad fact. I also don't own the French textbook mentioned in the chapter. I do have a copy of it though, and it's my least favorite text I used in college.

**XI**

"_I don't care if it hurts.  
__I wanna have control.  
__I want a perfect body.  
__I want a perfect soul._

_I want you to notice when I'm not around.  
__You're so fuckin' special.  
__I wish I was special."_

_-Creep, Radiohead_

ooo

On any other day, Harry would've enjoyed the English literature lecture taking place. The Canterbury Tales had always had a special place in the witch's heart. Today, as was becoming far too often, Harry's thoughts were preoccupied by something much more ominous.

Emily Bennett.

An enigma if Harry had ever encountered one.

All of the caramel skin, dark hair, and petite features that his best friend carried, but none of the kindness to back them up. Emily had clearly suffered some injustice in her life, and was back to right it. The story was all told in her eyes. Dark pools, void of all light, desperately seeking assistance.

Her only route to absolution was definitely the amulet, Harry knew. The amulet was her means of possessing him, the focal point of her powers in the mortal world. But what purpose did it serve? What did the amulet give Emily the ability to do?

What did possessing Harry allow the spirit to accomplish?

After training so often with Grams, Harry was aware of his own powers. Left to his own devices, Harry was indeed a powerful witch. With Emily's talisman, however, Harry was a tempest. A living, breathing entity of pure magical force. He was a wildfire, decimating anything in his path while encountering nothing strong enough to stop him.

Not even his own force of will.

And to top it all off, the talisman had been given to him by Damon. The elder Salvatore couldn't have known the effect that Emily's necklace would have on the slender witch. Harry hoped as such, anyway.

At least the amulet wasn't an issue anymore. It hadn't made a reappearance since Harry had banished it from Damon's dresser.

Harry tapped his eraser on the empty page in his notebook. He shook his head and attempted to tune back into the teacher, who was lecturing on the joys of the Knight's Tale. How wonderful it would be, he pondered, to exist in such a Middle English tale, the heroes and villains clearly defined. Real life, he was quickly learning, was never quite so clear cut.

Hell, he was dating a timeless killer with a somewhat nefarious disposition. One whose intentions were muddy at best. And damn if Harry wasn't falling in love with the insufferable vampire. Not necessarily a smart decision, but one the emerald eyed teenage was unable to change, even if he wanted to.

And he wasn't even sure if he wanted to.

The black haired witch sighed aloud and shut his eyes tightly, feeling a headache begin to bubble up. Too many questions and not enough answers. He was returned to reality by the bell ringing, signaling a class change.

Harry had to fight the urge to moan piteously as he opened his bag. There, seated regally on top of _Espaces: Rendez-vous Avec Le Monde Francophone, _was Emily Bennett's shining amber talisman.

Harry closed his messenger back quickly and stood up somewhat shakily. With a start, he realized that the classroom was utterly deserted, and not a sound was emanating from the hallways. Swallowing his panic, the green eyed witch closed his eyes again and exhaled slowly before speaking.

"Emily," Harry was surprised by the calmness and strength in his voice. "I know you're here, and I know you've done this. Show yourself."

"Your courage is admirable, Harry."

Harry's eyes snapped open as he turned towards the door. Emily was standing there, staring the younger witch down. Her outfit was the same as the last time she'd appeared to Harry. A grey cotton dress with a lighter shawl over it, and a bonnet perched jauntily on her head. Harry was again struck with how similar in appearance she was to Bonnie, but where Bonnie's features were warm and fae, Emily appeared sharp and austere. And her eyes were so very very dark.

The living witch's pretty green eyes narrowed as Emily began to approach him, and his hand twitched with the urge to cast on her before he spoke.

"What do you want from me?"

"Nothing you would not be willing to do for me," Emily's smile was cynical as she admitted this. "You would do my will of your own volition, were you only aware of all of the facts."

Harry's features became more guarded as the spirit rounded the row of desks he was between. She began walking down his aisle, trapping him between her and the wall.

"What facts? What am I missing?" Harry began backing up, towards the wall.

"I'm not sure I can tell you, Harry. Since you allowed me the power to be in this realm, the actions of the living are not so clear to me as they once were. Perhaps the path you were set on has been changed," Emily paused in her stroll to gather her talisman from Harry's bag on the floor. A genuine smile graced her face as she held it by its chain.

Harry's back hit the wall with a small _oof_, and Emily returned her attention to him. She re-commenced approaching the teen, stopping at arm's length from him.

"Now, though? It matters not. I have made my decision, and I will not be swayed from my course. What I do is what is best, and all will be made clear to you in time." Emily the hand holding her talisman out towards Harry. Her eyes took on a steely glint as she spoke again.

"Put it on," she commanded.

"No," Harry shook his head slowly. "I refuse. I can't control myself with your talisman. I can't control my magic."

"Do not worry about that. I will temper your power. Put it on."

"You'll help me?"

"I will. Your need not be concerned with your actions as long as my talisman is around your neck. I will care for you."

Harry took the talisman hesitantly. The thought of the pool of magic afforded to him by the talisman, plus Emily's aid in controlling himself? It was a very tempting offer.

What the hell, the Harry thought ruefully. What else could go wrong? He slipped the talisman over his neck, and gasped as a wave of power hit him.

He quickly realized that it wasn't like the last time the talisman had inundated him in magic, and his now acid-green eyes cut back up to Emily desperately as he sank down to the floor under the weight of the eldritch power. The dead witch had a very self-satisfied smile on her face, practically beaming down at the other witch.

Shit.

The classroom began to blur at the edges, and Harry vaguely felt his cheek hit the floor as his eyes rolled back into his head.

ooo

Bonnie Bennett was many things.

A witch. Harry and Elena's best friend. Moderately sarcastic. Entirely too stylish for Mystic Falls.

But these was definitely one thing Bonnie Bennett was not:

An idiot.

Granted, Bonnie was not going to be the valedictorian of her graduating class, but she was observant. Especially when the observation involved someone that she loved. Bonnie was nothing if not protective.

Which was exactly why she was eying her best friend in the entire world, one Harry Potter, with no small amount of horror as he walked across the opposite end of the cafeteria of Mystic Falls High School. Bonnie had known the black haired boy since the second grade, and due to over a decade's worth of sleepovers, movies, boys, and now witchcraft, Bonnie could say that she knew Harry better than she knew herself most days.

She immediately bolted, throwing herself into the crowd as quickly as possible to get to the lithe teen. Even from across the large room, she'd noticed the dull, vacant look in Harry's normally astute gaze. His normally smooth, albeit clumsy, gait was mechanical, as if he was getting used to his legs again.

Bonnie didn't know what was wrong, but she was going to get to the bottom of it. She groaned in frustration as she pushed through wall after wall of the people changing classes. Light almond eyes caught a glimpse of a white t-shirt and a shock of black hair, and the elfin witch charged through the crowd with a renewed sense of purpose, dark curls flowing riotously behind her

She quickly came to the conclusion that Harry was heading for the double doors that served as the main entrance to the school. Cursing the skinny jeans and cute sandals she'd worn that day, Bonnie realized that playing fair was only going to let Harry get away from her. She continued to follow the other teen towards the entrance, and waited for an opportunity to arise.

Smiling triumphantly as a hole opened in the throng of teenagers, Bonnie let loose a cantrip meant to trip the other witch. Right as she let loose the small amount of power, though, Jeremy Davis walked directly in between Bonnie and her target, taking the tripping hex for Harry.

Bonnie narrowly resisted the urge to scream in anger, though the irony of the situation didn't escape the petite witch. Jeremy Davis had been the whole reason they'd became friends in the first place, sharing a crush on the boy in the second grade.

By the time Bonnie got a clear shot at Harry, the other teen was exiting the high school.

"Harry!" Bonnie shouted at the other, garnering a small response from the teens still milling about, reluctant to go to class.

Harry didn't even spare her a glance as he slipped out of the front doors, the large metal door pulling shut behind him. Bonnie growled lowly as she ran at the doors, shoving them open with no delicateness to speak of.

"HARRY!" She slowed to a walk before stopping on the sidewalk leading up to the school. "Harry?"

Bonnie looked left and right. The other teen was nowhere to be find.

"Damn it," Bonnie breathed. She let out a childish huff, thinking about what to do next. Clearly, she needed to find someone that could help her.

Elena and Jeremy were out of the question, they were both at school. Bonnie wanted to minimize the amount of skipping that was going to occur. She and Harry were pretty decent students, so the two of them cutting was already going to be slightly conspicuous. Adding Elena's compulsiveness about going to class, and Jeremy's recent one-eighty, they would definitely get caught. Bonnie was not about to get a detention for Harry, even if he was weirdly magic-ed out.

Who to get, then?

Bonnie's plum lips settled into a grim line as she realized the one person she could call on for help.

ooo

"Well, look who we have here," the vampire smirked, leaning into the doorframe. "Little Bonnie Bennett. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Stuff it, Damon. I need your help." Bonnie glared up at him. Her feet were in a wide stance, and her arms were crossed over her chest. About as intimidating as the girl could manage.

"Whoa, hostile. What's up?"

"I don't know exactly what you've got going on here, but I know there's something supernatural about you. I don't particularly care, at the moment, to be quite honest. You know that Harry's a witch, right?"

Damon's too-blue eyes revealed a sliver of surprise at the witch's forwardness before they returned to their icy, unreadable, natural state.

"Yes," the tall vampire admitted. There was some hesitance in his voice as he finally answered the witch.

"Good. Then you can help me rescue him," Bonnie didn't elaborate before turning away from the boarding house and beginning the walk to her Prius.

"Wait, what? Rescue?" Damon called after the girl. He was in front of her before she even managed to get a foot on the driveway. "What exactly does Harry need rescuing from?"

"I'm not totally sure to be quite honest," Bonnie huffed again. "I'm also not sure where he is. He was cutting class. He made a break for it during class change. He lost me in the crowd of students, and by the time I got to the front door, he'd disappeared."

"You came all the way out here to get me because he's skipping class?" Damon's eyebrow was at an all-time record height in terms of arch.

"Yes and no," Bonnie clarified, using a small push to close and lock the door to the boarding house. She began walking Damon towards her car. "Harry wasn't all Harry when he was skipping. His eyes, they were vacant. Dead."

Bonnie looked up from where she was unlocking her car to see a multitude of emotions flicker across the normally unreadable vampire's face. Surprise, worry, and most frightening of all to Bonnie, fear.

"Do you know where he is? What's wrong with him?" Bonnie's voice held more distress than she would've liked for Damon to hear.

She didn't get an answer from the older man, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone.

"Damn it." Bonnie hissed.

How was it possible to be a preternatural being, and _still_ be left out of the loop?

ooo

Damon ran like he'd never run before.

Trees and wildlife blew past the vampire at a speed still somewhat less than his thoughts. He could punch himself for his own thoughtlessness. All of the thought the dark-haired vampire had put into The Plan, and he'd never considered the fact that Emily had enchanted the talisman to do more than she'd let on?

Hell, of course she would booby trap the thing. Damon would let her get burned at the stake a few short weeks later.

There was only one explanation that made sense to the vampire, and it was not an option he wanted to consider overly much.

He'd originally thought that the talisman was just something that Emily had put a little whammy on to give whoever wore it a little more strength. To give the bearer a little extra juice in order to open up the tomb under the remains of Fell's Church.

Clearly, he'd been wrong. Emily had done something to that talisman as a fail safe, and Harry was paying the price for it. The only possible place that Harry would've gone under the Bennett witch's juju was the ruin of the church.

Damon cleared the forestland between the boarding house and the church in an amount of time that he was fairly certain would break a land speed record.

The remains of the church stood in a small clearing, undoubtedly the entombment spell keeping the foliage from overgrowing what remained of the structure. Only about half of the outer wall of the church remained. Large gray stones sat in a parody of the once pretty little chapel, a couple of stone arches where windows had once been.

Anyways, his amazing timing would have been recording breaking if he wasn't dead and could come forward with such things, the vampire mused with a wry smirk.

"Still so self-satisfied, I see."

If Damon did such human things as jump in surprise, he would have. Needless to say, he did no such thing. He did, however, whip around to watch Harry approach him from the edge of the trees. Once in the clearing, the slight mage began to pace back and forth, Damon separating him from Fell's Church.

Bonnie was completely right, Damon noted. The Harry that was sauntering towards him was not his Harry, nor was it a Harry that Damon really wanted to meet. His normally vibrant green eyes were dull, a darker shade of green than the vampire had ever seen on the boy. His voice was also different. It sounded as Harry would sound, but with none of the correct inflections, none of the emphasis that the green-eyed witch would have spoken with naturally.

"The gears in your mind turn at an alarming rate, Damon Salvatore," Harry's normally sweet smile was a twisted mockery of itself. "You wonder what is wrong with your lover?"

"What's going on here? Emily? Is that you?" Damon's glare would've punched holes through a lesser being.

"You always were such a clever boy," Harry slash Emily stopped finally pacing, turning to level Damon with a wicked glare. "Too clever. For too long I've watched your maneuverings, vampire. Such a grand maestro, with all the town your orchestra. A whole century you've played all of us. It ends now."

"Oh, does it?" Damon sneered at the witch possessing Harry. "What exactly do you plan on doing, O Great Dead Witch?"

Rather than formulate a response, Emily/Harry flicked their wrist, and Damon suddenly found himself launched into the air, held in a magical vise. The force on him was so great that he couldn't muster the strength to move at all.

Emily/Harry then bent down, delicately beginning to roll up the bottom of the boy's jeans. The spirit then turned up to Damon, grinning devilishly.

"Harry is terribly fond of these pants. Rolling them is a necessary precaution, lest the get dirty in what will ensue."

The spirit then mildly flicked its wrist again, and Damon came crashing down onto the Earth with the force of a small meteor. All of the air left his undead body, and he was fairly certain that several bones had been broken by that one. Damon made a mental note not to piss Harry off once this was all over.

Provided he survived. Emily was taking much longer than most people to warm up to him, it seemed.

Ghosts these days. No sense of friendliness anymore.

"Do forgive me for the rough landing, I just needed to make sure you could witness this with no quips coming from that barbed tongue of yours."

Damon abruptly found himself sitting, undoubtedly pulled by the spirit's powers. He was still fully immobile, and more than a little dazed and winded, if he was going to be completely honest. Eyes the color of glaciers finally focused on where he assumed Harry was.

The possessed witch was indeed standing there. His jeans rolled up neatly, and his white v-neck shirt was mostly untouched by the chaos of the day. It was mid-afternoon, and the sun was beginning to descend behind the teen, casting him into a silhouette. The breeze ruffled his unruly black hair lightly, and the smile on his face spread greatly as he realized that Damon's attention was back on him.

"Now, you will see what it is like to have your life ended before your eyes," Emily's vindication played out in high definition on Harry's face. "You will understand the pain that you have put this entire town through so many times."

Emily walked closer to Damon, settling down on her knees in front of the vampire. She sat back onto his heels, and reached into the neckline of his shirt. A cold sense of dread made its way up Damon's spine as he started to realize what Emily's intentions were.

"Em-Emily! Don't do anything you'll regret!"

Emily fished the talisman from Harry's shirt, smiling triumphantly as her vision shifted back to the vampire helpless before her. The ghost held no satisfaction as she gazed upon the loosely veiled fear playing out in the vampire's blue eyes. She felt no sense of happiness as it began to dawn on him that she was about to destroy everything he'd ever wanted.

She was only a ghost, in the end, and such emotions were for the living, and only the living.

What she did feel, however, was an awe-inspiring sense of justice. Emily Bennett was filled with the knowledge that what she was doing was _right_, and after so many years of waiting, she could finally rest after this single act.

With a mere look, she flung Damon against the stone wall of the old church. She held him with enough magic that he would stay for a few minutes once she was done, and returned the little witch to his body. Such displacement was unpleasant at best, and she pitied the boy the reality he was returning to.

It mattered not, the spirit decided. He was a strong witch, from powerful stock. He would fare much better than she in this life. And, as she cut her eyes over to the vampire, perhaps the cold one's plans had changed without him realizing. Harry's memories led her to believe as such.

But all of that was conjecture. All that was concrete and mattered to the spirit was the talisman in her hands now. She held the talisman outward and whispered a few words in gaelic. The amber colored gem grew brighter and brighter, shining pure white after a few seconds.

A soft smile grew on the teen's face. One that Harry would be more likely to wear. Emily looked up at Damon, hearing no words as he clearly pleaded with her to change her plans.

"It's over," Emily whispered through Harry's mouth.

She clenched the hand holding the talisman into a fist, and the pristine white gem was crushed into a thousands pieces. A blinding light filled the clearing as all of the talisman's powers were released.

As Emily's consciousness fled Harry's body, the last the she heard on this plane was a hoarse scream filling the clearing.

Ooo

Harry was only aware of two things as he began to float back into consciousness.

One: Passing out and waking up with the mother of all hangovers was becoming all too common in his life, especially given the distinct lack of alcohol in it as of late.

Two: The fact that his first cognizant realization was that he'd been possessed by the spirit of a long dead witch said that he needed to do some immediate re-prioritization of his life.

On the periphery of his awareness, he could vaguely hear someone yelling. It wasn't altogether unpleasant, Harry decided, this state of underwater near-limbo he found himself in.

It was warm, and peaceful, and he could already tell that he was going to wake up with a monstrous headache.

"_Awaken, little witch." _

And with those three words, Harry was cast back into complete consciousness. He sucked in a deep breath of air and attempted to take in his surroundings. He was outside again, much like the last time he'd been possessed. He opened his eyes blearily, and waited for something to come into focus.

The loud wail he'd been aware of only peripherally before had stopped as soon as he'd regained awareness.

He was at the church again. Harry was immensely thankful that Emily had been so kind as to leave his glasses on this time, and to keep them in good condition. The black haired boy sat up slowly, turning to survey where he knew the remains of the church to be.

He bit back a gasp as the wall came into his full view. There, on the wall, was Damon Salvatore looking like Harry had never seen him before. Those icy blue eyes were burning with rage, and every muscle in that warrior body was straining against some unknown force. The full force of that glare was on Harry, and for a moment the witch felt his heart stutter in his chest.

Harry wondered what could have caused such horror in the vampire, and as he began to think on it, the events of the past few hours came crashing down on him. It played out like a movie to him; Emily possessing him in the classroom, making his way to Fell's Church, confronting Damon, destroying the talisman.

None of it made sense to Harry.

Why would Emily destroy a talisman she had created? Why was Damon so distraught at it's annihilation?

What had the talisman been the key to?

A key...Harry's mind began racing. Flashes of unimportant conversations came back to him, and suddenly the puzzle pieces began to make a macabre sort of sense.

_"She died," Zach said frankly. "There was a fire, and she died in it. Damon and Stefan were left behind, with nothing but malevolence and bad memories between the two of them."_

_"A fire," Damon answered, keeping his attention on the river. "A tragic fire."_

"_Ancestors of our Damon and Stefan, they were named after them. Apparently the Salvatore name was like royalty here, even more than the Lockwoods, then Willow Creek happened. They lost someone they loved very much when Fell's Church was razed, and their own father shot both of them shortly afterwards."_

_"Actually, an ancestor of your good friend Bonnie's. Her name was Emily Bennett, and she was an exceptionally powerful witch. She made this for me and did me another favor. In return, I promised to keep tabs on her descendants," Damon replied._

A moment of startling clarity shook Harry to his very core. The fire at Fell's Church had killed people, but Katherine was not among them. Emily had protected her using the power of the talisman, and Damon had given Harry the talisman in order to free her, or save her, or whatever needed to be done.

A sick heaviness formed in his stomach as the truth began to settle in. He'd been played all along, nothing more than a pawn to be moved about at Damon's whims.

Harry turned with a lightning quickness towards Damon, who was still fighting the invisible bonds placed on him by Emily in Harry's body.

"Stop," he commanded. His voice was barely above a whisper, yet all of the fight drained from Damon's body and the older vampire hung limp in his magical chains.

Harry didn't feel the hot tears begin to burn their way down his flushed cheekbones. He didn't hear the soft exhalation of his name under Damon's breath. He didn't see his own too-pale hands begin to shake in a weird mixture of outrage and pure pain.

All he felt was a deep, overwhelming numbness. He felt cold all the way through his bones.

Faced with a reality the witch hadn't thought he would ever have to wake up to, he did the only thing he could think of.

Harry ran.

ooo

A/n: Hi there, everyone.

I'm obscenely sorry for taking so long. Suffice it to say, I am on the mends from a very wounding autumn season, lol. I went from being able to write pages at a time to having no time, and sometimes no will, to write. Last week I sat down to write some more of this chapter and literally added one word before I had to save, shut down, and go do six trillion other things.

I have the first chapter of an Hp/Twilight (I know, I'm judging myself, too) fic mostly written. I'll try to post that in the next week or so. Expect chapter 12 of this story within the next two weeks, as my life is starting to normalize.

Thank you all for sticking with me and reading!

Please review!


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